Bloodshots
by Farie Insignias
Summary: A series of unconnecting one-shots and drabbles surrounding everyone's favourite vampire and witch.
1. The Proposal

**Hey guys! Here's the first installment of my apology to all my lovely Adverse Effect readers. No one requested this story but it came to me randomly and I couldn't stop myself from writing it so... here it is! Actually I've only gotten one prompt so far (which I will be working on soon Sky Samuelle, I promise!), so don't be shy guys. If there's something you'd like me to write about just give me the prompt and I will. This is my gift to you. In Other News - no update for AE this week, but I should have something for next Sunday!**

**I'm actually a little nervous about this story, 'cause it's my first time writing Vampire Damon. Hopefully he's not OOC, and hopefully you guys enjoy this as much as I did writing it!**

**OH! Final note! - Anyone else in LOVE with Damon's room? Especially his bed... I could live in that thing. It was beautiful... okay now, on with the story!**

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**The Proposal**

"Honestly, I don't see what the big deal was." Bonnie exclaimed, tossing her bag and jacket onto his King sized bed as she stormed across the sparse room.

He was in front of her, teeth bared in a snarl, before she could blink. "He was all over you! And you just sat there, laughing! Laughing and tossing your hair around."

"When did I toss my hair around?" She asked, momentarily distracted by his imagined scenario. "And anyways, he was funny. What was I supposed to do? Not laugh because I have a boyfriend?"

"Yes!"

"You had no right -"

"_I_ had no right? _HE_ had no right! I had _every_ right!"

"You don't own me Damon! Get over yourself!"

Game face on, he lunged for her but she managed to bring her arm up and fling him against the opposing wall before he made contact. Heart beating a mile a minute, she could feel the adrenaline pumping through her veins as she kept him pinned against the wall. "What the hell was that?"

His voice was velvet and sex as it reached her ears, as if he hadn't just tried to attack her. "Oh Bonnie, what's a little love bite between us?"

"Love bite? Is that what you call attacking someone like a rabid animal?" She accused. He shrugged as best as he could while being pinned down by an invisible force, his features easing back to normal. "You were trying to mark me. You're ridiculous."

"Am I? Really? And what if I started flirting with the next woman who hits on me? Hmm? Then we'd see who's ridiculous."

"Are you kidding me?" She exclaimed, finally releasing him from her hold so she could toss her hands up exasperation. "You flirt with other women all the time! But unlike _you_, I'm secure in our relationship. For some godforsaken reason, I seem to trust you. Obviously, you don't feel the same way."

"I trust you!"

She stared him down for a long moment, disbelieving until he reaffirmed "I do! It's the guys I don't trust. If I didn't let him know you were with me, he would have started feeling you up. I could see it in his eyes."

"I can take care of myself."

"I know you can, but that doesn't make it easier to watch. So _sorry_ for scaring off you little boy toy, but it was either that or rip his throat out. Either way, I come out looking like the bad guy..." He turned to face the ornate wood panelling of his four post bed, muttering darkly to himself, "I should have just ripped his throat out."

"How would you feel if I went around growling _mine_ at every girl that looked at _you_ sideways?"

His eyebrows shot skyward, a lecherous smirk crawling across his features. "Oh please, by all means, do." That was a sight he would love to see.

She scoffed, rolling her eyes to the ceiling. "I'd rather not have sore throat thanks... _The point_ I'm making is that I'm quite aware of the fact that I don't want to be with anyone else but you, and I know that you're a one-woman man when you're serious about someone and that you're serious about me. What does it matter if the rest of the world doesn't know we're together, as long as we do?"

"Maybe if the rest of the world knew, guys would stop hitting on you all the time."

"Guys don't hit on me that often."

"Often enough!" He exclaimed, turning to face her.

"What do you want me to do? Go around wearing an 'I'm-with-Damon' sign taped to my forehead? God, it's not like we're married!"

"Well maybe we should be!"

They both froze, a tension filling the silence between them as they eyed in each other in mild shock. Bonnie scoffed, shaking her head as if to dismiss the thought.

"Don't be ridiculous."

"What's so ridiculous about you marrying me?" He questioned, offence colouring his voice.

"Nothing." She breathed gently, in a half-hearted attempt to pacify him.

"Then?"

That made her pause. Her eyes snapped to his unflinching gaze and slowly her jaw slackened as realization hit.

"Oh my God, you're serious."

"Of course I'm serious. Why would you think I wasn't serious?"

"Because you don't just throw things like that out!" He lifted an eyebrow at her, conveying a silent message and she sighed tiredly before correcting herself. "_Normal people_ don't just throw things like that out."

He rolled his eyes, scoffing, "Normalcy is highly overrated."

"Clearly."

"So?"

"So what?"

"Are you gonna marry me or not?"

She narrowed her eyes at him in concentration briefly, waiting for the satisfying smack that could be heard when the book she sent flying at him finally collided with his head. "Ow! What the hell?"

"No I will _not_ marry you!"

"Why the hell not?"

"Would you like a list? Should I alphabetize it?"

One corner of his lips pulled into a smirk, his face a mask of perfect sarcasm that screamed 'not funny' as he said, "Funny. But one _good_ reason will do."

"Because, Damon," She began as if speaking to a small child, "_ownership_ is not a good foundation for marriage."

"Then what is?"

"LOVE, Damon! Love!"

"Well we have that."

"Trust!"

"Apparently we have that too!"

"Communication?"

"We're communicating right now, aren't we?"

"Are you seriously trying to convince me? You're insane!"

He narrowed his eyes accusingly at her, "You knew that before we even started dating, so you can't hold that against me."

He appeared in front of her suddenly, eyes boring into hers in that ultra-intense way he had that she secretly loved. "You know what I think, Bonnie Bennett? The real reason you refuse to marry me is because I didn't propose the way you want me to."

Her cheeks darkened slightly as she glared daggers at him. "No. I refused because marrying you would imply some sort of future for us and we both know there's no future for this." She gestured between them to emphasize her point.

A tension filled the tight space between them, thick enough to choke on.

"There is if I snap your neck."

Damon couldn't help the satisfaction he felt at hearing her sudden intake of breath and he smirked unabashedly as she blushed even darker. They had been exchanging blood quite regularly for a while now. At first Bonnie had felt like a hypocrite, but it was often hard to keep track of her actions in the... heat of the moment, and blood and sex just seemed to go together so naturally for Damon that eventually she stopped questioning herself. Suffice to say, she pretty much always had enough vampire blood in her that if she were to, at any moment, collapse dead without warning she'd more than likely wake up a vampire.

Damon would never tell her this, but that was half the reason he made sure each time they were together he gave her some of his blood. That, and it was sexy as hell having her drink from him.

Her jaw closed with an audible snap as she ground out, "You wouldn't dare."

He shrugged nonchalantly as if they were speaking about the weather. "Can't say I haven't thought about it..." Almost even did it too, once or twice. He wasn't going to tell her that though; he liked being a living dead person.

"I would set your ass on fire so fast –"

"Yeah, yeah," He waved off her threats, his eyes widening slightly in that crazy way they did. "It would be worth it."

She gave a long suffering sigh, her shoulders drooping tiredly. "We've been over this Damon. I can't promise you forever."

"Well then, for fuck sake, Bonnie, marry me! At least then I'm guaranteed something until I can convince you that you're being stupid."

She bit her lip as her eyes scanned his features over and over again. He could see the wheels turning in that pretty little head of hers. A small breath escaped her before she spoke reluctantly, "I'll think about it."

"Is that a yes?" He smiled winningly.

"No..." She warned with narrowed eyes, "it's an 'I'll think about it.'"

He hummed contemplatively, his eyebrows lost in his hairline, a knowing smile gracing his lips while he made his way to the bedroom door.

"Where are you going?" She called out to him before he disappeared around the corner.

Over his shoulder he replied, "To tell Stefan the good news."

He disappeared before she could argue and she allowed herself a groan which morphed into a half-shriek as he popped his head back into view. "Oh, and if you want to be the one to tell Elena you should probably call her now. You know how those two are: couldn't keep a secret from each other to save their lives." And with that he was gone.

Shaking her head in disbelief, she frowned. There was no way she was marrying Damon Salvatore. There was no way she was marrying him. _No way_, she thought over and over again even as she took out her cell phone and began dialling Elena's number.


	2. Coming Around

**Hi all! To start I'd like to thank everyone whose taken an interest in this little series of stories here. To let you know, this is a part 2 to the first one-shot, because Sky Samuelle wanted to see the tactics Damon would use to get Bonnie to marry him and then my mind went crazy with ideas and I had to write them all down. So I hope everyone enjoys this, 'cause I had fun writing it. Also! Send prompts my way peeps. This series is for you guys after all.**

**P.S. I realized after writing this that there's no Caroline anywhere to be seen. So, I promise to try to write a Bonnie/Caroline interaction in the future, because I love her and I can't believe I neglected her like that!**

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**Coming Around**

"We should set a date."

She could feel him hovering just behind her shoulder as she stood at the kitchen island finishing off her plate of grapes. The gang, minus Caroline and Tyler, had gathered at Bonnie's tonight for a well deserved night in.

"A date for what?"

He leaned in close, humming the wedding march before giving her ass a gentle smack and making his way to stand on the opposite side of the island.

"I don't believe I said yes."

"Right, so that's why you called Elena and told her?"

She hadn't told him that she'd talked to Elena. Her eyes shot to the girl in question nestled snugly in her boyfriend's lap. She gave an apologetic smile with combination shrug in return. "Sorry, Bon. I kind of congratulated him when he opened the door."

Bonnie just shook her head in disappointment and refused to look at Damon's shit-eating grin splattered face.

"But in Bonnie's defence," Elena continued, eager to be the good best-friend again, "she did say she hadn't agreed to anything yet and that she was thinking..." She trailed off as Damon levelled a glare at her.

"Why don't you two comprise with a long engagement?"

_Well if it wasn't Saint Stefan to the rescue_, Damon thought with a roll of his eyes. Out of the corner of his eye studied Bonnie as she thought about it. He could pinpoint the exact moment Bonnie decided it was a good solution – the way her features softened out, her lips turned up the tiniest bit and she looked thoughtfully at something non-existent to the left – and he frowned in annoyance.

"That's a horrible idea." He blurted before anyone could praise it.

The others looked at him as if he had declared himself a vegetarian.

"How is that a bad idea?" Bonnie exclaimed.

It was a matter of principle. He could feel something crawling under his skin at the thought of _Stefan_ being the one to convince Bonnie to marry him. _He_ proposed; _he_ should be the one to convince her. But he didn't want to sound petty so he said, "Stefan came up with it, ergo it's a horrible idea."

"What are you? Ten? Why would I marry you when you can't even act like an adult?"

"Trust me, Hun. I'm _all_ adult – XXX." He leaned over the island towards her until their noses were almost touching and whispered silkily, "But you already knew that."

Her eyes locked on his and for a moment if felt like his heart was beating, then something in his head went _pop_. "OW!" He grabbed at his head as if that would help ease the momentary pain while Bonnie moved away from island and her plate of unfinished grapes to plop onto her couch in the living room.

"That was entirely uncalled for." He commented, swinging around to look at her over the half-wall. "You know, I think I'm being pretty mature here."

She refused to look at him so he continued.

"I mean, look at Stefan. He's been with Elena _forever,_ but has he proposed?"

Elena visibly tensed in Stefan's arms as he glared at his brother. Damon made his leisurely way into the living room, sitting unceremoniously on Bonnie's legs. She growled, wiggling back and forth until she managed to get them out from under him and placed them roughly on his lap, making sure to kick him in the process. All the while Damon continued to speak, "What exactly are you waiting for old man? She won't be young forever."

"Not that it's any of your business Damon, but I asked Stefan to wait until after I was done College to turn me."

"And I respected her decision. We're in no rush." Stefan said, drawing circles on her back. Elena melted against his touch, leaning in briefly to give him a chaste peck on the lips.

"That's pathetic." Damon scoffed. "If you were serious about each other you wouldn't wait."

He turned to look at Bonnie pointedly before stating, "I think this is proof that I love you more than Stefan loves Elena. You should marry me."

The sharp look she was giving him was dimmed by the small smile she was trying to fight. "First of all, this isn't a competition, and secondly," she turned her attention to the golden couple giving them a warm smile, "I think it's sweet."

"You would." He grumbled under his breath.

"Drop it."

* * *

Over the next month and a half Damon implemented a plethora of different strategies to get Bonnie to agree to marry him.

One time, in an act of true desperation and, in Damon's opinion, shear evil genius, he had stopped in the middle of sex – after having spent the better part of half-an-hour torturously winding her up – and refused to continue until she agreed to marry him. Livid, Bonnie had simply gotten out of bed, went to the bathroom and took matters into her own hands. When she was done, her lips drawn and silent, she returned to bed and went to sleep, leaving an extremely frustrated Damon to attend to his own needs. She didn't speak to him again for two days.

Suffice to say, he would never be using that tactic again.

On another occasion, he had purchased the gaudiest engagement ring he could find knowing she would hate it and want him to take it back. He refused to do so unless she came with him. Little did Bonnie know she was walking into a trap.

As soon as they entered the store Damon made a big show of being the 'happy couple' excited to find the right engagement ring. Bonnie was forced to play along, glaring murder at him every time the attendant looked away. You see, Bonnie hated making a scene or drawing too much attention to herself – and Damon, knowing her weakness, exploited it in order to get her to pick out her own engagement ring.

Underhanded? Maybe...

Effective? Incredibly so.

When he noticed the attendant about to place the ring Bonnie had reluctantly picked out (a simple white gold band with two tiny diamonds on either side of a slightly larger one) into a little velvet box, he got an idea. "Actually," he called out loud enough to get everyone in the store's attention, including the attendant's who turned back to him, "could she just wear it from now? She's been bugging me about this for ages..."

He could feel the muscles in Bonnie's back tense where his hand was splayed.

"Of course," the attendant complied, walking over to them and giving the ring to Damon. Bonnie hesitated for a long while (but not long enough to draw attention) before placing her hand slowly on the counter and letting Damon slip the ring on her finger.

It was alarming what an affect such a small gesture could have on a person. Both Bonnie and Damon were taken aback by the power of seeing the tiny band resting snugly on her finger and for a moment they simply stood there, taking everything in.

Damon, being the first to recover, leaned in close, his lips brushing lightly against her ear as he whispered, "See? That wasn't so painful, was it?"

The look she sent him, covertly masked so that only he could interpret it, clearly told him that she would be showing him the true meaning of pain as soon as she got him alone.

* * *

Every morning over the past month and a half, Bonnie had been waking up to find notes in place of Damon. Whether she was in his bed or her own, it didn't matter. The notes had ranged in tone from amusing and sweet to borderline insulting, but all had been hand written and many of them, she was surprised to find, tended to lean to the poetic side. She kept them all in a box underneath a loose floorboard – and that's a secret she was going to take to the grave.

* * *

Bonnie rolled over, fighting hard to stay a sleep. She luxuriated in the feel of sheets against her skin and the way the mattress seemed to swallow her up while maintaining firmness. This was heaven. But try as she might, Bonnie couldn't shut her senses off long enough to drift back into the abyss and eventually the smell of bacon floated its way towards her, knocking what little hold on sleep she had out of her grasp and making her mouth water. Crawling her way across the King sized bed of amazingness, Bonnie started briefly at the contact of the cold floor against her bare feet before making her languid way downstairs.

As she entered the kitchen she was greeted with the image of Damon Salvatore, a towel draped across one shoulder, leaning over a hot stove working his culinary magic as he turned eggs into omelettes. Throwing a cheeky smile over his shoulder at her, he greeted, "Well good morning, Goddess Divine."

"Morning to you too, Sexy Back." She replied, enjoying the view of him dancing to music only he could hear as he continued to cook. "What are you doing?"

"Making us breakfast, like a good husband." She walked up behind him and he stopped what he was doing long enough to place a chaste kiss on her lips before turning off the stove and plating the omelettes. He placed it beside the bacon he had removed from the oven just before she got downstairs. "See? I even made your favourite... banana pancakes."

Frowning, she looked further down the counter until she saw the big stack of pancakes. "You made pancakes _and_ omelettes? You expect me to eat all that?"

"Why do you think you won't be able to?" He asked, throwing his arms carelessly around her waist and dragging her closer to him.

"I guess we'll find out."

"Don't worry. I'll help... because I'm wonderful like that." He leaned in close, his breath fanning across her face, lips only inches apart when Bonnie suddenly lifted a piece of bacon to her mouth and took a large bit.

He reeled back and glared at her as she moaned in delight. "Mmm, delicious."

"You know, sometimes I think you only married me for my cooking."

"Guilty as charged."

He rolled his eyes, tapping her lightly on the behind and turning her to face the kitchen table. "Go sit down. Today, I'm serving you."

She complied, but tossed a suspicious look back at him on her way. "Why are you being so nice?"

"I can be nice." He countered, slightly offended, as he brought the food over and sat down beside her.

"Yes you can, but there's usually a catch. You didn't kill someone did you?"

"Recently? No," he scoffed, brushing the idea aside with a gesture. His eyes widen suddenly as he sprang from his seat, "Oh! That reminds me."

He moved over to the microwave and removed two mugs before walking back, "No breakfast is complete without a little vitamin AB positive, if you know what I mean?" Sitting back down he placed a mug in front of her before taking a sip of his own. "Ah... that hits the spot. Just the right temperature too."

She stared at the mug blankly for a moment struggling to understand what was happening. He eyed her expectantly, a teasing smile spreading across his face, "Well, aren't you going to drink yours? Or are you just going to stare at it some more?"

Slowly she reached for the mug. It was warm in her hands, but not hot. She brought it closer to her face and the aroma seemed to hit her full force. It was appealing in a way the food wasn't. The scent was full-bodied and slightly metallic, but there was something under that... something intoxicating, like... life.

She raised the mug until the rim finally met her lips and, closing her eyes, she titled it up just marginally – just enough to taste. As soon as it hit her tongue she groaned in appreciation. It tasted even better than it smelt: sharp and sweet, with a rounded aftertaste that left her wanting more. Ambrosia. Before she even registered it she was drinking large gulps. She could feel a tightness pulling around her eyes and the sweet tension of her fangs elongating as the warm blood continued to slide down her thro –

Bonnie shot up in bed, her breathing erratic as she frantically tried to find her bearings. The sun was streaming in through the cracked curtain on her window and falling in a thin strip across her bed. Concentrating on that thin strip of light she slowly managed to calm down. Frustrated with herself for overreacting to a dream, Bonnie tossed herself roughly back onto her mattress.

It had just felt so real. For a second there she was convinced she was actually a vampire. The blood... she could still taste it. Turning over and away from the window, her hand came in contact with a piece of paper. Sitting up she placed it in the stream of light to read:

_Roses are red, violets are blue_

_If you weren't so stubborn, I'd be married to you_

And suddenly it all made sense.

* * *

"How did you know?" Bonnie asked as Elena got up to put season 3 of F.R.I.E.N.D.S. into the DVD player so they could continue their marathon.

"Know what?"

"That you wanted to spend forever with Stefan."

Elena paused in her motion of switching the DVDs out to sit back on her hands and look over at Bonnie. Understanding where this was coming from, she answered earnestly.

"I can't imagine living without him."

"Yeah, but forever... that's, you know... _forever_."

"Yeah I know... but if Stefan feels for me even half of what I feel for him, then it wouldn't be right for me to leave him."

"What do you mean?"

Moving away from her spot on the floor, Elena came over to sit beside Bonnie, all the while trying to find the right words to express something she had realized a while ago but never voiced.

"I mean... let's say, we broke up because I didn't want to change and it be weird for him to still date me when I'm eighty. Well then, I would only spend the rest of my life missing him, while he might spend the rest of eternity missing me."

"So you're doing this for him?"

"Partly. And partly for me too, 'cause I'm selfish and I _want_ forever with him. I don't want a limit on our time together. So really, it's for both of us."

Bonnie studied her hands in her lap, taking everything Elena had just said into consideration. There was a doubt – no, fear, lingering in the corners of her mind she couldn't seem to dispel. Hesitating slightly, she took a deep breath before saying, "You don't know that he'd stay mourning you forever... he could move on."

"I know. But if it were me... I wouldn't be able to. It will always be Stefan for me."

* * *

"You're getting desperate." Bonnie offered as a greeting as she marched into Damon's room unannounced. Looking up at her from where he leaned against his headboard, he closed the book he had been reading and smirked knowingly at her.

"What makes you say that?"

"Making it so that I dream about being married to you."

"You dreamt about being married to me?" He started, narrowing his eyes in contemplation. "You know, I'm pretty sure that's what people call a sign. I think it's telling you, you should marry me."

"Really? 'Cause I think it's telling me you're a manipulative bastard!"

"Bonnie! Why would you even –" his face suddenly dropped the mask of feigned indignation he had began with and he placed the closed book down beside him as he continued speaking with a sense of offhandedness, "Yeah, I don't have the energy to pretend. So... what gave it away? Was it the vampire thing? I thought that might be pushing it..."

"It was you making me breakfast."

"I've made you breakfast!"

"Omelettes _and_ pancakes? You're not that dedicated a boyfriend."

"Aha! But I wasn't your boyfriend, I was your husband. If you married me, I'd step it up a notch." He smiled enticingly at her.

She shook her head, coming over to the bed and crawling her slow way towards him. Once she reached him she gave him a chaste kiss on the lips. "Tempting."

She shifted then, to lie against him, using his chest to lean her back on and his shoulder as a pillow while he took the opportunity provided to snake an arm around her waist. They stayed like that for a while, not really doing anything other than soaking in the other's presence before Bonnie broke the silence. "Is that what it's really like for you? With the..."

"Yup." He hesitated a moment before asking, "Not as bad as you thought, huh?"

He took her silence as the closest thing he would get to a confirmation. "So... what are you doing this weekend?"

"I don't really have anything planned."

"You want to get married?"

She turned her head towards him and gave him the stink eye.

"I know you want to Bonnie. What are you so afraid of?"

She was about to offer up a smart mouthed remark before she stopped herself. Leaning further into him, she took a deep breath before deciding to answer honestly. "I don't know. I just... I feel like I'd be cheating. Everything must come to an end: that's the rule of nature."

"All that lives must die, passing through nature to eternity." He quoted quietly.

"What's that from?"

"Hamlet... I think." She felt him shrug beneath her. "I can't remember anymore."

"Yeah, well that sums up how I feel."

"Well technically, you'd still be dying and passing into eternity. You'd just be experiencing it differently than most people."

Bonnie always found it a little strange when Damon made really good points. Even after dating him for years she sometimes forgot how amazingly intelligent and insightful he could be. She bit her lip gently, trying to figure out how to bring up the thing that had been really bothering her lately. Deciding there was no neat way to do it, she dived right in.

"And then, I've been thinking about my Grams –"

"She's dead. Get over it." The words had left his mouth before he'd even realized he had something to say on the matter, and immediately they both froze. "Bonnie." He began quietly, but she was up and out of his arms faster than even he could move.

Seeing her making for the door he shot in front of her. "Wait, no! That's not how I meant for that to come out."

Her vision was beginning to blur as a few stray tears traced their way down her cheeks, but she still managed to level him with a death glare. "Move. Or I'll do it for you." She threatened just above a whisper.

He hesitated for a second before stepping to the side and allowing her to pass. Though he had been sorely tempted to keep her where she was so she could hear him out, he had enough common sense to know that right now he would more likely receive a stake through the heart from her than a bent ear. He'd give her a few hours to cool down and then he'd corner her.

Several hours later he found her sitting in front of the lit fireplace in the living room. She sat on the couche staring into it blankly, looking deep in thought. Coming close enough that he knew she was aware of his presence, but staying far enough away that if she threw something pointy at him he could make a clean get away, he cleared his throat awkwardly before beginning.

"What I meant was... that you can't keep living up to these imagined expectations of what your Grams would have wanted. You have to start creating your own moral compass and stop using hers. You're two different people, Bonnie. You're allowed to make your own decisions based on what _you_ believe."

When she didn't respond, he took a few cautious steps forward until he was standing in front of her. "I can't pretend to have known Shelia very well, but... I do know she wasn't afraid to stand up for what she believed in and I can imagine she'd want you to be able to do the same thing... That's what I meant to say."

Bonnie continued to stare off into the fire silently. After a long while, Damon could feel something inside himself deflate, dragging his shoulders down with it, and he turned to make his slow way back to his bedroom when finally she spoke.

"I know – that's... you're right, but... I can't help wondering what she would say about all this."

He turned back to her, almost overwhelmed with the relief that he felt having her speak to him again, but he couldn't help lifting a curious eyebrow. "If it means that much to you, why don't you just ask her?"

"What?"

* * *

"I'm not so sure about this anymore." Bonnie said, grasping the picture tightly to her chest.

"It'll be fine, Bonnie." Damon comforted breezily from across the room. "I'll be right here the entire time. You have nothing to worry about."

"Yeah, but –"

"If you don't want to do it then –"

"No, I do." And she did.

"Then do it, Bonnie. You're the only thing holding yourself back at this point."

Gripping the frame's edges tighter, she nodded in acceptance of the encouragement, before stepping into the circle and placing the picture of her Grams in the centre. Then stepping back out she took a few calming breaths before beginning the incantation. She could feel the flames of the candles as they began to rise with her power. She waited for something in the air to change to signal the completion of the spell, but the room remained unnaturally still.

"Bonnie." Damon's voice called gently, breaking her concentration. Feeling disappointment tearing at her heart she opened her eyes to look at him, only to find her view of him clouded by something.

"Grams?"

_Hi Baby Girl._

The tears sprung to her eyes unbidden and there was nothing Bonnie could do to contain them. "Grams... I've missed you."

_I know Sweetie, but I've been right here. I'll always be with you – you know that._ Shelia gave her a warm smile, no less comforting for being transparent.

"Grams, I... I have so much to tell you."

_No need, Baby. I've got eyes. I know what's been going on._

"I didn't peg you for a voyeur, Shelia. Just how much have your eyes been seeing?" Damon interjected, his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Damon." Bonnie reprimanded.

_Enough to know that you came for my blessing, so I would watch what I said if I were you._ She shot back over her shoulder at him.

That shut him up.

"So you know why we called you?"

Shelia remained silent, but her head dipped marginally in consent.

"Grams... I'm so sorry."

_What for?_

"For everything. I feel like I'm betraying you."

_Oh no, Baby Girl. You've never done anything you should feel ashamed of. I'm proud of you. Of the young woman you've grown into._

"But it was my fault you –"

_Now none of that! I was a grown woman. I knew exactly what I was doing and I'm tired of you carrying around this unnecessary guilt. We all make mistakes sweetie._

Bonnie tried to digest what her grandmother was saying to her and as she did she felt a heaviness lift from her heart. It was almost dizzying. She had become so accustomed to the weight she had forgotten she was carrying it, and now to have it gone... It was like she was floating.

_Now... let's get to the matter at hand, shall we? You and Damon?_

"Yes."

_And you love him?_

"...Yes."

_And you want to know if I'm okay with you spending forever with him?_

In her periphery she could see Damon's head snap round to focus on her but she couldn't bring herself to meet his eye and instead focused harder on her Grams. "Yes."

_Well, I can't say I'm thrilled._ She shot Damon a dark look._ But like I said, I've got eyes. I know he makes you happy. I also know that he'll keep you grounded, the way you do for him. That_'s _something not everyone has. And it doesn't hurt that he loves you more than you can imagine._

Bonnie snuck a peek at him to find him staring hard at some imaginary spot on the ceiling, pretending he wasn't in the room. She'd never seen him look so uncomfortable before. It was kind of endearing.

_Baby,_ her Grams continued, drawing her attention back to her, _I know that's not the real issue. You're afraid of change. You're afraid that if you take these leaps you'll lose yourself along the way. But I can promise you that no matter what your decision you will never stop being Bonnie Bennett._

"Well technically she'll be Bonnie _Salvatore_..." Damon couldn't help but point out. Both Bennetts glared at him so he decided to add as a sort of peace offering, "but she'll still be Bonnie, regardless."

Turning back to each other, Grams spoke serenely, _Bonnie Bennett: the last of the Bennett line... My Grandbaby. It's time for me to go._

"Already?"

_I've stayed long enough. Just know you have my blessing._

"Grams don't go yet, please." But she was already starting to fade, until all that remained of her was her smooth, mellow voice.

_Keep the boy in line, Bonnie. For the good of the world – marry the man._

Damon felt his eyes widen at the shear genius of the notion. Why, in the last month and a half, had he never thought of appealing to her big humanitarian heart? Marry the vampire; save the world.

The sound of Bonnie sniffling yanked him back into reality and he moved to sit beside her on the hardwood floor. He placed a reassuring arm around her softly shaking shoulders and drew her closer until she was sitting snugly in his lap.

Resting her forehead against his chest she continued to cry until eventually she managed, "She's gone."

"Hey now, you heard Shelia. She's still around somewhere – watching us, being all old and pervy."

"Are you trying to comfort me?"

"Something like that."

"Well stop."

They fell into a silence then, where he simply held her and she cried, and when eventually her tears dried up and she could feel her eyes begin to droop in fatigue, she spoke softly, barely loud enough for him to hear, "I want to spend forever with you."

A soaring feeling filled his chest as he waited for her to fall completely asleep before moving her to her bed. He lay down beside her and watched as her breath moved through her in a slow, even rhythm - memorizing her features for the millionth time since he realized he loved her. And now he would get to spend the rest of eternity memorizing her every feature, because Bonnie was a woman of her word and she wanted forever... with him.

But he'd probably get her to say it again tomorrow while she was lucid. You know, for insurance reasons.


	3. Wicked Wiccan Wedding

******I'M ALIVE! I know a lot of you are going to be upset that this isn't an update of AE, but I've been working on this bad boy for over a month now in every spare moment I've managed to scronge together so I just want to POST IT and get her _done_! That being said, considering the amount of time and energy put into this thing, I'm not satisfied with the end result. This a product of too many ideas and not enough time to truly explore them. _Sigh_.**

******This is an extension of the first two chapters, so it's become a three-shot. A few of you asked to see the wedding and Sky Samuelle made a special request to see a Wiccan wedding. She even promised to build a statue in my honour if I wrote it, and well... how could I refuse? IMPORTANT NOTE: I have a great respect for the Wiccan religion. One of my closest friends is Wiccan. So I just want everyone to be aware that _I_ am aware that the ceremony in this chapter is not completely accurate. I took a lot of creative liberties because I was trying to picture how they would do it on the show, so it's a lot more flashy. Also I've put the urls below of what Bonnie's wedding dress and the reception look like in this story. If you'd like to see them just remove the spaces. The dress can be found on a Spanish site, it's the tenth dress called Label. The dresses on this site are GORGEOUS!... Sorry. I'm such a nerd!**

******http:/ www. lasposa**. info/ vestidos-novia/ nueva-coleccion-silueta/ (- #10/Label)

**http:/ www. wedding53. com/ wp-content/ uploads/2007/11/chirtmas-wedding .jpg**

* * *

**Wicked Wiccan Wedding... Sort of**

"There's so much to do! We have dresses to look at, and themes to plan. Not to mention we still have to book a reception hall. Are there even any good reception halls in Mystic Falls? There probably aren't. We'll probably have to look outside of town. And of course –"

"Caroline, calm down. We have plenty of time to figure this stuff out." Bonnie stated in an attempt to placate an all-but frantic Caroline Forbes. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Elena throw her an amused look.

"That's what you think! But the next thing you know, it's your wedding day and _nothing's ready_."

"That's not going to happen. I have you to make sure it doesn't." She reassured.

This seemed to do the trick. Caroline visibly relaxed, a smile spreading across her face so bright it could blind the sun. "True."

With that she bent out of view, rummaging in her bag for something. Bonnie jumped slightly as Caroline tossed a multitude of magazines onto the island of the Salvatore kitchen. Elena reached forward to pick one up, reading the title aloud, "Today's Bride...?"

"I've taken the liberty of highlighting some of the styles that I think would be most suited to your body type, Bonnie." Caroline offered in way of explanation. "Also, I've circled a few bridesmaid dresses that weren't hideous... something to think about. Of course, all this could change depending on the theme."

Bonnie felt her eyebrows skyrocket. Not knowing what else to say, she managed a, "Wow... Thanks Caroline..."

"Uh, Care," Elena started a little hesitantly, "you do realize this is _Bonnie's_ wedding, right? So she'll be the one planning it."

"Of course I do." She replied breezily. But Bonnie watched as she began to fidget with the magazines as if suddenly unsure of herself. That's what Caroline did. She'd take control of a situation, not realizing that she may be overstepping her boundaries. Like that time at Elena's fifth birthday party when she started opening her presents for her in an attempt to be more time efficient.

Bonnie wondered vaguely how much she was going to regret what she said next. "Caroline... Do you want to help me plan my wedding?"

Caroline's head shot up and Bonnie could see her visibly struggling not to smile too widely. "Well, I wouldn't want to impose, but since you asked." She bent briefly out of view again, before popping back up with a pen and day planner.

In her periphery, Bonnie noticed Damon enter the kitchen with a bag of blood. He crossed over to where they kept the mugs and brought one down, and Bonnie couldn't help but watch his cute little derriere as he did so. Her lips tugged up in a smile as her mind began to drift, but a sharp poke in her ribs from Elena brought her out of her private thoughts. Giving her her full attention she could tell that her 'private' thoughts weren't so private after all as Elena smirked devilishly before saying, "Caroline's speaking to you."

"Right! Sorry. What?" She turned to Caroline, who looked a little miffed from being ignored.

"Budget. What are we working with here?"

"I don't know. We haven't even set a date yet, let alone talked about a budget."

Caroline pinched the bridge of her nose, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. "Oh my God, you poor misguided children. What would you do without me?"

"We'd probably be dead in a ditch somewhere." Elena offered, with a small smile and Bonnie only stopped laughing when she noticed Caroline's rather intense glare.

"Ha-ha. Now we need to come up with at least a ball park in order to start planning. Can you even guess what your budget might be?"

A snort from the corner of the room made them all send their attention to Damon, who was removing his mug from the microwave. "There is no budget."

"What?"

"I said there's no budget. As in, buy whatever you want. Money isn't an issue; I'm filthy rich, remember." Taking a slow sip from his mug, he watched all three girls go still.

Bonnie could practically hear the credit card angels singing around Caroline's head.

She felt her eyes widen in thought of the long shopping hours to come. Did Damon have any idea the monster he had just created? She glanced at him and glared. From the smirk plastered on his face, she knew he did.

He looked her directly in the eye, bringing up his free hand to wave his fingers at her while saying, "Have fun girls." With that he turned on his heel and left the room. She looked after his retreating form, mentally running through the list of ways she knew to kill a vampire.

* * *

"I've been thinking..."

The feeling of Damon groaning low in his chest reverberated against her skin. He huffed gently, breath fanning along her neck where his face was buried before he rolled on to his back. "There goes sexy-time."

Bonnie smirked, moving until she was straddling him. "I never said that. I just said I was thinking."

"About?" He asked, raising an eyebrow, his smirk matching hers.

"... The wedding."

"You can't back out of that. You've already said yes, twice." He replied nonchalantly, though his sudden placement of his hands on her thighs – as if he could physically hold her to her word if he needed to – screamed otherwise.

"No, nothing like that." She absently began tracing patterns across his abs trying to think of a way to broach the subject. "I just thought that it might be nice... to do things a bit more... on the Wiccan side, considering I'm a witch and all."

He relaxed into the mattress, snorting. "Do whatever you want."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Really? That's all you have to say on the matter?"

"Bonnie, we could get married by circus clowns in the middle of the Sahara desert for all I care. As long as your name is Salvatore at the end of the day, I could care less how it happens."

She wasn't sure whether to be offended or moved by his cavalier attitude towards their wedding day. In a sense she knew it was his way of being sweet, and it _was_... sort of. Or maybe she only found it sweet because she was used to him...

"Have you told Caroline yet?"

She groaned, folding forward to press her forehead against his shoulder, as if she could hide from the difficult task by burying herself in Damon.

"I'll take that as a no."

"Do you want to do it for me?" She mumbled against his skin. His hands made their slow way up her legs before coming to rest on the small of her back.

"I love you, but not that much."

If it wasn't for his superior hearing he wouldn't have been able to pick up on her grumbling about how useless he was, and as it was he pretended like he couldn't. "Speaking of the future..."

"Were we?" Came her muffled reply.

"We are now. So when are you going to start moving your crap over here?"

She managed to lift her head high enough to inspect the area around them. There were a few of her belongings scattered around the room, but she had done a fairly impressive job over the past couple of years of keeping her things separate and at home. It was probably a subconscious attempt on her part to not get too attached, 'cause one could never be too cautious when dating Damon Salvatore... but now she was marrying Damon Salvatore, so there went that. She shrugged lightly, "I don't know. After the honeymoon I guess."

Damon smirked as he pictured said honeymoon. He closed his eyes, concentrating on the sensation Bonnie was creating as she absently massaged the muscles of his chest and arms, and shivered a little. Oh yes, the honeymoon would be good...

"Where are we going, by the way?"

"Where do you _want_ to go, Bonnie?"

"Well, I haven't really been anywhere outside of Virginia before..."

"Mmm. In that case, might I suggest Italy as a first out of country experience. It'll blow your mind, Bon." With his eyes still closed, he ran his hands back down to her thighs before inching them up under her nightie. "Then again, Greece has amazing food and Spain is always a good time. Or if you're feeling a bit more tropical, there's a large variety of islands to choose from."

Though incredibly distracted by his hands, she couldn't help but be taken aback by the sudden realization of how old he was. She had always been aware of the age difference, but it had never been so pronounced to her before.

She eyed the picture he made with his eyes closed. Forever frozen at twenty-five, he managed to look even younger resting the way he was, when in fact, he had lived long enough to travel around the world and back again.

"Have you been to all these places?" She asked, though she suspected she already knew the answer.

"Of course."

"Have you been to Egypt?"

"Mmhmm."

"Singapore?"

"Twice."

Bonnie racked her brain for somewhere remote. "... Uruguay?" That wasn't really remote, but it wasn't a hot spot either.

"A week in Montevideo. That's the capital, in case you're wondering."

"Well that sucks."

He peeked through one eye to study her. "What sucks?"

"I always imagined spending my honeymoon exploring somewhere new with someone. But you've already been everywhere." She answered, feeling strangely vexed by the idea.

"I haven't been _everywhere_." He countered, opening both eyes now.

"Where haven't you been?"

His hands froze in their activities as he thought about it. After a long moment he looked her straight in the eye and answered, "Antarctica... Greenland... Iceland too, now that I think about it."

Rolling her eyes, she slid off of him and onto her back. "So all the crappy places."

Damon rolled onto his side, propping his head up with his fist as he watched her cross her arms over her chest in displeasure. He couldn't quell the amusement he felt bubbling up at her irritation. It was rare when Bonnie acted childish so he lapped it up when she did. He enjoyed being able to call himself the mature one at any given moment. Grinning like the cat that ate the canary, he poked her gently in the side and teased, "If we ever do go to one of those places, I'll be sure to tell them you said that."

When she didn't respond, he grinned wider and pushed himself closer until he was flush against her side. "What are you so upset about? So what, I've been to Italy before - on several different occasions, each one more amazing than the last." She glared menacingly at him and he brought his face inches away from hers completely non-pulsed. "I've never been there before with you, so it's bound to be a whole new experience. All sorts of discoveries to be made. It'll be like going for the first time all over again."

He almost had her. He could tell from the way she was biting her bottom lip and looking all reflective. He stared intently at that bottom lip and imagined nipping at it gently. Just enough to break the skin, just enough to get a taste and then he'd drag it into his mouth and suck... mmmmm...

"Okay," she said, snapping him out of his fantasy and he focused on her. Her features had softened out and she wasn't glaring at him anymore. "I think I'd like to go to Italy."

"Then it's settled. We go to Italy. Now..." He closed the remaining distance between them, brushing his lips slowly against hers before whispering, "Back to sexy-time."

* * *

Bonnie played with the phone in her hands, turning it over and over as she worked up the courage to dial the number written out in front of her. Taking a deep breath, she flipped the phone so that the numbers were facing up and pressed the necessary buttons. Placing the cool plastic against her ear, she listened as the call attempted to connect, her nervousness growing with each ring. She was almost about to hang up when a voice on the other end finally picked up.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Lucy."

"Bonnie?" Lucy's voice was uncertain.

"Yeah, it's me."

"Hey, girl! How are you? It's been a while."

"I know. I'm so sorry for not getting in touch sooner."

"Don't be. I have hands: I could have called _you_. So what's up? Still in deep with the Salvatore brothers?"

"Um, you could say that..." She replied, eyeing her engagement ring and vaguely admiring how the light played across the diamonds. "Actually, that's kind of why I called."

"Oh? You're not in trouble, are you?"

"No. For once everything's pretty calm."

"Then?"

Bonnie paused briefly before blurting, "I'm marrying Damon."

"Damon Salvatore?" Lucy exclaimed in disbelief.

"That's the one."

"Wow. You are in deep."

"You have no idea."

Bonnie felt herself relax as she listened to Lucy's laughter on the other end of the line.

"So is this you inviting me to the wedding?"

"It's a little more than that." She paused again, wondering how to explain herself while Lucy patiently waited for her to elaborate. "I wanted to have a Wiccan ceremony and I was wondering... if you would, maybe... officiate it."

"Whoa. Are you asking me to marry you?"

"If you're okay with that."

"Hellz yeah, I'm okay with that!" She assured jovially, before sobering, "I would be honoured to marry you and Damon. I guess I have some studying to do."

* * *

_The sun felt amazing against Bonnie's skin. She reclined in the tall grass of the meadow, absorbing its gentle rays and the sounds of nature around her. Somewhere to her left, she became aware of the blades of grass being pressed down as a wild rabbit made its way in her direction. She shifted in order to get a better look at it and it froze momentarily, eyeing her with mild distrust. Its watery brown eyes inspected her, trying to gage whether or not she was a threat, while she took in its long ears and twitching nose._

_A heavy _**thump**_ sounded to her right and she turned to try to make out the source. It was weird. That hadn't sounded like something one would hear in the forest. Her brow scrunched together as she tried to make sense of it._

It was a tree_, some foggy part of her brain told her and, not questioning it, Bonnie turned her attention back to the rabbit. It was still there watching her as if there had been no large _**thump**_. It continued to twitch its little nose at her and hopped forward, closer. Bonnie wondered if it would allow her to pet it. Lifting a slow, cautious hand, she began to reach towards it when it spoke._

"_Psst. Bonnie."_

_Forgetting her previous task, her hands clapped together in surprise. A talking rabbit! How wonderful! And it already knew her name. _

_The rabbit continued in hushed tones, "Bonnie. Are you awake?"_

_Of course she was awake. She wouldn't be able to talk to the rabbit if she wasn't awake... right? Wait. Something about that sentence didn't make sense... and why was the rabbit whispering?_

"_I want you to be awake." It continued, sounding almost petulant._

_Suddenly, the ground began to shake underneath her, and all the while the rabbit repeated over and over again, "Wake up, Bonnie. Wake up."_

Squinting, Bonnie blinked into the sudden darkness of her room. Through the grog of her mind she became aware of hands gripping her shoulders and steadily shaking her. Pushing them away, she struggled to make out the form hovering above her while simultaneously gathering energy to throw at the figure if need be.

"Oh, good. You're up."

"_Damon?_" Her voice was rough from sleep even to her own ears, but she cleared it in an attempt to sound properly annoyed when she asked, "What the hell?"

"Happy to see me?"

"Shouldn't you be at your Bachelor party?" She asked, glancing at the clock on her bedside table and reading 3:00 AM.

"Yeah, I got bored with that." He said, pushing her unceremoniously to the other side of the bed before tossing himself down beside her. The bed gave a massive groan in protest, and Bonnie was suddenly very glad that her dad wasn't home that night. "Though it was fun. Stefan got a lap dance from a woman named 'Candy.' Didn't even put a fight about it. I have photographic evidence to prove it... and I will be showing Elena first thing tomorrow."

Bonnie shook her head in amusement, propping herself up on her arm to lean over him. "I'm sure you will... And how about you? How many lap dances did you get?"

"None. I was a good boy. I should get a reward." He crooned suggestively, his blue eyes sparkling up at her, his grin wide and just a little too easy.

"You're three sheets to the wind."

He snorted. "Three? Closer to four and a half."

"Well at least you had fun."

"I did. It was a good time. Even got to kill Jeremy."

"_What?"_ Feeling suddenly very awake, Bonnie went stock still and hoped desperately that she had misheard him.

He waved off her concern with one hand. "He had his ring on. He came back after like... half an hour. No big deal. Oh, but you should have seen how his body flopped down those stairs –" He broke off, laughing gaily at the memory.

Bonnie was struck with the sudden realization that she was marrying a sociopath.

"I think I have a picture of that too..." He trailed off into a yawn. "Only a few more days 'til you're Mrs. Salvatore. Nervous?"

"That's one word for it."

"Don't be. You'll do great." He said, as if it were a performance or an exam rather than a lifetime commitment.

"Anything else you want to tell me?"

"Hmm. Robbed a bank."

"Please be joking."

"Nope. Alaric didn't think we could. Long story, short: we can. But... I'll... I'll return the money in the morning. Don't really need it, anyways." His words were beginning to come slower, taking on a sluggish quality as fatigue settled in.

He turned his head towards her, his lids drooping as he struggled to look at her. "The last time I robbed a bank was... 1927... Chicago... It was a good year."

Bonnie shook her head in disbelief, watching as he finally allowed his eyes to shut. _There's still so much I don't know about him._

"I'm glad I met you." He began; his voice barely above a whisper. "Sometimes... sometimes I wish... I had met you when I was still human... instead of..." He was asleep before he could finish the sentence, but he didn't need to. She knew exactly what he had been about to say, and it made her chest constrict painfully.

She watched him sleep for a little while, before reaching over and caressing his cheek. He didn't so much as stir at the contact. He hadn't just fallen asleep, he had passed out.

Damon Salvatore may be a sociopath, but she couldn't help loving him... Though she'd have to make sure he stopped killing Jeremy just for shits and giggles, because that was sick.

* * *

Bonnie stood absolutely still as she studied her reflection in Stefan's full length mirror. The dress was gorgeous. She was glad Caroline had talked her into a traditional wedding dress.

Taking in the image she made in her white dress she could feel her heart beat underneath her ribs at an elevated rate, but no matter how many deep breaths she took she couldn't seem to slow it. Her palms were beginning to sweat, but she didn't want to wipe them on her dress so she rubbed them slowly together.

_This is happening. I'm really doing this. I'm marrying __**Damon Salvatore**__... My God..._

Completely consumed by her thoughts, Bonnie didn't notice the person behind her until they had wrapped their arms around her waist in a tight embrace and placed their head beside hers.

"He loves you, and you love him, and neither of you are as happy as when you're with each other." Elena's words caressed her ear, soothing her nerves considerably. It was like she had read her mind.

Bonnie put one of her hands on top of Elena's arms and gave a small squeeze of appreciation as she smiled at their reflections. "True. It's just... every once in a while I'm hit by the fact that... it's _Damon_."

"Would you want it to be anyone else?"

"No." Bonnie answered honestly, without hesitation. Her brow crumpled in confusion suddenly, "Can you remember when it was exactly that I lost my mind?"

"No. I can't remember that far back." Elena teased. Bonnie ribbed her gently to detach herself from her embrace just as the door to the room was tossed open and Caroline entered.

"The boys are almost – Oh Bonnie... you look... wow."

"You think so?" Bonnie asked, throwing one more look in the mirror's direction. She went to run a hand over the loose curls that were cascading around her, but Caroline's own hand grabbed hers before she could.

"Don't. You look perfect."

Bonnie didn't even have to be looking at Caroline to tell she was seconds away from tearing up. She could hear it in her voice. Smiling, she took her into her arms and held her close before chiding softly, "Caroline. You promised not to cry."

"I'm not." She protested in a watery voice. "It's just allergies."

"Even if you weren't a vampire, that wouldn't work. You've never had allergies."

Pushing her away, Caroline frowned. "So sue me. It's my best friend's wedding: I can cry if I want to."

"Well, could you at least wait until the ceremony? If you start to bawl, then I'll start to bawl –"

" – And then I will – " Elena interjected.

" – And then I'll have to redo my make-up and I really don't want to have to do that."

Caroline sniffed slightly, but seemed to sober at that. "I think I can make it 'till then."

"How are the guys doing?" Elena asked.

Caroline had been monitoring the boys all morning, making sure they were on schedule and keeping Damon away from Bonnie. After she had walked into Bonnie's room early that morning to find Damon asleep and draped across her best friend, she had blown a gasket, claiming they weren't taking this wedding seriously and that if Damon didn't leave that instant they could kiss their marriage goodbye.

Damon had scoffed and told her that was a stupid superstition, to which she replied by literally, tossing him out the window. If he hadn't been so caught off guard she wouldn't have been able to accomplish it. Damon had threatened bodily harm, but Bonnie shot him a dirty look from the ledge of her window and he walked away. She hadn't seen him since, and Caroline was doing her job to ensure it stayed that way until the ceremony.

"Good. They're pretty much done. Oh! I almost forgot." She said, swinging her attention to Bonnie. "Do you have your four somethings?"

"My four what?" Bonnie felt her brow furrow as she studied Caroline.

"You know... Something old, something new..."

"Something borrowed, something blue." Elena finished when Caroline trailed off.

"We're doing that?" Bonnie couldn't stop herself from asking.

"Of course we're doing that! Do you want your marriage to be successful or not?" Caroline exclaimed, clearly close to being completely exasperated.

"I really don't think that's going to have any..." She cut herself short when she spotted Elena, who had moved discretely behind Caroline's back, shaking her head frantically. Getting the picture, she decided it was probably easier just to give her this. "Uh yeah, let's... I mean, yes. I want my marriage to be successful."

"Well, this is pretty short notice. I can't believe I almost forgot about this entirely. Could you imagine?"

Caroline looked so earnestly distraught by the idea that Bonnie had to bite hard on her bottom lip to keep from laughing. It didn't help that she could see Elena shaking with silent laughter in the corner. With some sort of otherworldly strength she managed to shake her head no.

Caroline began to pace the room in thought, glancing at an object every once in awhile speculatively. Bonnie used her momentary distraction to give Elena the stink eye, but all that seemed to do was make her shake harder.

"Something... old... hmm..." Caroline mumbled to herself before turning suddenly to Bonnie, eyes wide as inspiration struck. "Damon! He's ancient! He can be your something – what is wrong with Elena?"

"I don't know. I think she may have been dropped on her head as a child."

Elena managed to pull herself together long enough to throw Bonnie a half-decent glare, but it was ruined shortly after by the large grin spreading across her cheeks. "I think that's a great solution, Care. And the dress could be something new."

_Nice save with the suggestion_, Bonnie thought, and she could tell from her expression that Elena was thinking pretty much the same thing.

"Perfect. That's two out of four. Now for something borrowed..." Caroline let her eyes scan the room again before dropping them to her hands. She inspected them closely for a long moment before working the fine diamond bracelet from off her wrist.

"Care, what are you doing?" Bonnie asked, eyes wide as Caroline shoved the bracelet in her direction. She had given her that bracelet, and a set of simple diamond earrings to Elena, as tokens of her appreciation for all their help with the wedding.

"My bracelet, I'm letting you borrow it." Caroline explained as if it were obvious.

"You don't have to."

"I want to."

Slowly reaching forward Bonnie allowed herself to take the bracelet. She attempted to put it on, but it was a little awkward. Elena moved forward taking the bracelet from her and getting her to hold her arm out so she could put it on her as Caroline turned back to face the room.

"Just something blue left. What could we use for that...?"

"Damon's eyes are blue." Elena offered thoughtfully.

"I don't think that would work." Bonnie countered.

Caroline hummed in agreement. "Yeah, that might be pushing it."

There was a long silence as the girls wracked their brains and their surroundings for something useful.

"Blue nail polish! I forgot I left this here," came Elena's excited voice from Stefan's bathroom. Bonnie _uw_ed in approval.

"No way! It might get on the dress." Caroline shot down from across the room, and Bonnie groaned.

They were back to square one.

After several long minutes of nothing, Bonnie was beginning to feel impatient. She just wanted to get married and get it over with! She may love Caroline dearly but there were only so many silly traditions she could take. She could feel restlessness begin pawing at her insides, but just as she was about to declare that three out of four wasn't bad, she remembered something.

"I have a pair of blue underwear."

Caroline froze. "Why didn't you mention this sooner? Are you wearing them now?"

"Obviously not."

"Well, where are they?" She glanced at the antique clock on Stefan's desk and did some quick calculations. "I could probably run to your house and back. We have ten minutes."

"Ten minutes?" Bonnie's heart sped up again. "No. It's okay. I..." Her eyes narrowed as she remembered something else.

"Actually... I think they might be in Damon's room."

The little breeze Caroline made as she sped out of the room shifted the papers littering Stefan's desk. Faintly, Bonnie thought she could hear Damon's raised voice though she couldn't make out what he was saying and then Caroline was in front of her again, dangling a pair of blue underwear in front of her face.

"Are these them?"

* * *

"Caroline! Would you stop barging in here!"

She ignored him, dashing across the room at an inhuman speed and rummaging through the few areas he had for storing things. His eyes narrowed into slits. He was still pissed about being thrown out of that window... this was not helping his mood. "What the HELL are you doing?"

"Bonnie needs... Found it!"

He could just make out something blue balled up in one of her fists before she was out of the room and shutting the door behind her. He shook his head and tried to stop grinding his teeth together.

He honestly wondered how he had managed to overlook Bonnie the day he picked up Caroline at The Grille and started their sordid 'relationship.' He suspected it had something to do with her being a Bennett. Her being a Bennett meant being a witch equalling not being able to compel her and having to have an actual relationship which took effort. He hadn't wanted effort. He wanted easy... a plaything, and he got it. Sometimes he thought he had been an idiot.

Damon fumbled with the fabric of his tie for what felt like the millionth time in the past few minutes. When he did manage to make a knot it was lumpy and awkward and didn't look right. It was taking all his willpower not to just rip the stupid thing to pieces and go without.

A chuckle somewhere to his right cut through his irritation and folded it over on itself. He threw a warning look in Stefan's direction, but Stefan just smiled and nodded towards the offending piece of fabric. "Need some help?"

Damon contemplated turning down the offer just to spite him, but it was his wedding day and he wanted to look his best, so he made sure the tie landed directly in his face when he threw it at him instead and smirked, "Sure."

Placing the burnt orange material around his own neck, Stefan began to carefully make a knot. "Nervous?"

Damon scoffed, "Why should I be? It's Bonnie."

"Exactly. It's _Bonnie_. This is it."

Feeling a sudden dryness he couldn't seem to swallow past develop in his throat, Damon walked over to the emergency bottle of bourbon he kept in his bathroom cabinet and took a short swig as Stefan continued.

"If I were you, I'd be terrified."

"Well that's the difference between you and me, Stef. I'm not scared of what I want." He replied, perhaps a little more coolly than he had intended.

Stefan crossed over to him, offering him the finished tie which he took. Putting it on, Damon adjusted it so that it fit snugly around his neck without feeling like it was choking him.

"I'm not scared of that. I would be scared of screwing up."

Damon studied his brother for a long moment from behind narrowed eyes, before asking, "Why are you my Best Man, again?"

"'Cause no one else likes you enough."

"I don't know about that. There's always Alaric." Turning toward the mirror he inspected his reflection and smirked.

_I look good, if I do say so myself... and I do._ He had consumed three bags of blood earlier today in order to bring a bit of colour back into his cheeks, and it had successfully given them a rosy tint, making his eyes appear that much bluer. His hair was in that effortlessly messy, but still presentable way that he knew Bonnie loved. He couldn't wait to see her.

"I'm just saying I could understand if you were nervous."

He shot Stefan a look. "Are you still on that?"

"Bonnie is the first serious relationship you've ever had – "

"Katherine was serious. A complete hoax, but serious."

"Okay, second serious relationship you've ever had, and now you're about to take the biggest leap of your immortal life."

Damon picked up the bottle of bourbon, feeling the dryness scratching at his throat again, and brought it to his lips, but stopped himself before actually taking a drink. He stood like that for a moment, with the glass of the bottle sitting against his lips, and then returned the liquor to its rightful place in the cabinet without taking a sip.

Turning towards Stefan he placed a hand on his shoulder and leaned forward into his space to speak as if imparting great wisdom. "The second, the best and the last, little brother." Then he slapped him lightly across the cheek and walked back into his bedroom, calling over his shoulder as he went, "Now, I'm going to go get married. Are you coming?"

Stefan allowed himself a smile from behind Damon's back. He wasn't sure why he had felt the sudden need to test Damon's commitment to getting married – it was probably his ever present need to protect rearing its annoying head – but he was satisfied in knowing that Damon wasn't going to cower out at the last second; that he was happy and that Bonnie would be too.

* * *

The ceremony consisted of a small gathering of people assembled in the Salvatore's backyard. It was a closed ceremony – only open to those who were aware of the supernatural world – to avoid having to provide any awkward explanations if things got too otherworldly. In total the guest list rounded to about seven people: Jenna, Alaric, Jeremy, Tyler, Liz, Bonnie's father Graham Bennett, and Matt.

Bonnie didn't mind. Everyone who was important to her was accounted for, and Damon couldn't care less either way as long as they had a witness to make it legal (though secretly he was glad Stefan was there).

In the centre of the yard there was a circle outlined with leaves and white flowers of all different variations. One small section of the circle was cleared to make an entranceway. Just above off centre of the circle stood a stone alter with a small assortment of objects laid out on its surface, and in front of that alter, waiting to begin the ceremony, stood Lucy.

She looked serene, focused and surprisingly confident for someone who had never done this sort of thing before. Later, at the reception, she would tell Bonnie that she had been scared shitless, but if Lucy was one thing it was a good actress.

Standing in front of the opening of the circle, Damon played idly with the cufflinks on his shirt as he waited for Bonnie to come down from the house. He was vaguely aware of the chatter from the guests on his left and his brother's solid form on his right. Then suddenly he caught movement in his periphery and he looked up to see Caroline and Elena filing their way towards him... and behind them was Bonnie.

He felt the cool air expand his lungs as he took in a large, unexpected breath and held it. A spark of panic shot through him when realized he couldn't remember how to exhale... then slowly it dawned on him that he was dead, and breathing wasn't compulsory. He would have felt like a fool if he wasn't so distracted by the image Bonnie made walking the short distance from the house to his side outside the circle.

Bonnie had always been beautiful, but at this moment... there were no words.

Their eyes locked somewhere on her journey, and they didn't break contact again for longer than a moment for the rest of the ceremony. Coming to a stop beside him, she smiled, almost shyly and suddenly a tension he didn't realize was carrying rolled off of him and he was grinning like an idiot. No matter how hard he tried to reel his smile in, it found its easy way back across his face.

"Hi." He whispered so that only she could hear.

"Hi." She whispered back, smile widening to match his.

Before the alter, Lucy raised her arms to garner the small groups attention. Walking over to Bonnie and Damon she kissed them both and brought them into the circle while Elena and Caroline moved to close the circle off with more flowers.

Lucy's voice was strong and open as she began, "Who comes to be joined in the presence of the Goddess? What is thy name, O Man?"

"My name is Damon Salvatore." Damon recited as rehearsed.

"Who comes to be joined in the presence of the God? What is thy name, O Woman?"

"My name is Bonnie Bennett." She replied, hoping desperately that her hands wouldn't get all sweaty again as she tried to ignore the butterflies wracking havoc in the pit of her stomach.

"Damon Salvatore and Bonnie Bennett, we greet you with joy." Lucy proclaimed, raising her arms to indicate to the small gathering.

Turning to the alter she picked up what resembled a stick and raised it for everyone to see. "The wand that I hold is the symbol of Air." As she spoke the air shifted around the group becoming a strong breeze. The leaves of the trees overhead bristled and danced on their branches. "It is life, intelligence and inspiration. By this wand of Air, we bring to your hand-fasting the power of Mind."

Placing the wand back down on the alter she picked up a short dagger in its stead. Holding the golden hilt in both hands she lifted it over her head. "The dagger that I hold is the symbol of Fire."

Knowing what was expected of them, Bonnie and Damon presented a hand to Lucy, palm up. Bonnie squelched the urge to flinch at the feel of the cool metal against the skin of her hand. Biting her lip, she watched as the blade pierced her flesh and a small pool of blood raced to the surface. The pain was sharp, but bearable and she watched as Lucy repeated the action on Damon.

Catching Damon's eyes with hers she slowly raised her hand to his lips, which were pulled back in a satisfied smile. His lips hovered tantalizingly over the cut as he drew out the moment, much like he had the first time she had willingly offered him blood. Then suddenly, his uninjured hand was pressing her palm closer against his lips and she could feel the slight suction.

If it wasn't for his own cut being pressed against her lips she wouldn't have been held accountable for the noises she might have made... which would have been mortifying considering her dad was there.

Lucy's voice sliced through Bonnie's musings as she continued to speak. "It is light, energy and the vigour which runs through our veins. By this dagger of Fire, we bring to your hand-fasting the power of Will."

Turning once more to the stone alter she exchanged the dagger for a chalice full of water and piece of paper. Lifting both the chalice and paper for all to see, she spoke, "Prosperity."

The paper burst into a tiny ball of flames in the centre of her palm and she placed it into the chalice, putting her now empty hand on top as a cover before she continued. "The chalice that I hold is the symbol of Water. It is love, growth and fruitfulness. By this chalice of Water, we bring to your hand-fasting the power of Desire."

Setting the chalice down, she closed eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them the circle was outlined in a ring of fire creating a pentacle on the ground at the centre of which stood the three of them. "This pentacle is a symbol of Earth. It is law, endurance and understanding which cannot be broken. By this pentacle of Earth, we bring to your hand-fasting the power of Steadfastness."

As quick as it came the fire died down. "You may now join hands." Lucy instructed before retrieving a length of rope from the stone surface behind her.

Damon and Bonnie placed their right hands together and then their left hands together to form an infinity symbol while Lucy tied the cord around their wrists. As Lucy ceremoniously tied them together, Bonnie and Damon exchanged vows, promising each other eternity.

* * *

_You are cordially invited to celebrate the union of_

_**Damon Salvatore**_

_And _

_**Bonnie Bennett**_

_The 19__th__ day of September, 2016_

_6:00pm, at the Lockwood Residence._

* * *

Damon Salvatore loved a good party. He had been to _thousands_ of them in his extended lifetime, but this one was, by far, the best. Maybe it was because he knew everyone here, or maybe it was hearing Stefan quote three different Jon Bon Jovi songs in his Best Man speech... maybe it was because he wasn't sulking in a corner over Elena... Yeah, those things probably helped. But more than likely it had something to do with Bonnie _Salvatore._

He grinned widely as he spun her across the dance floor before pulling her in close to him. She smelled amazing. She _looked_ amazing. Peeking up at him from under her lashes she smirked and brought herself closer. He lifted an eyebrow as he felt one of her hands slide down along his spine and grab his ass.

"This is mine now, you know." She whispered cheekily, lips hovering just beside his ear.

His grin got even wider, remembering the argument that led to this moment. Shrugging slightly, he admitted, "I think I can live with that."


	4. Tonight

**Disclaim!**

**First, I want to thank everyone for all the amazing reviews and favourites, etc. They always put a smile on my face. Second, this is my first unconnected one-shot so far in the series! Woo! I feel like I've accomplished something. lol.**

**This story is just pure fun. I really hope you guys enjoy it. It was inspired by two songs - Tonight (I'm Loving You) by Enrique Iglesias ft. Ludicris and Give Me Everything by Pitbull ft. Ne-Yo - I'm obsessed with these songs right now, so if you want the tone of the story you should give them a listen.**

* * *

**Tonight **

Bonnie Bennett was usually very careful about drinking, because she had a tendency of making really bad choices when drunk: exhibit A – making out with Damon Salvatore; exhibit B – sleeping with Damon Salvatore. Not that Damon was complaining.

It had been a year and a half since Klaus had turned their lives upside down, and in that time Damon and Elena had grown apart (to everyone's shock and surprise). Damon had been determined to find his brother. Elena, who was eaten by guilt, kept her interactions with Damon to a minimum unless she thought it would help rescue Stefan in some way. Probably the biggest shock of all though, was Bonnie's involvement in rescuing Stefan.

When things started to fall apart with Jeremy after Anna informed him of who was responsible for her death, Bonnie threw herself completely into the _Stefan Issue_ in an attempt to distract herself. The actual rescue mission ended up involving a road-trip for Bonnie and Damon that resulted in the successful return of Stefan and the development of a friendship... in the loosest terms possible.

They still butted heads over everything, but it was less hostile and more teasing, almost even playful. He enjoyed hassling Bonnie because she gave as good as she got. And yes, maybe he flirted with her just a little bit more than he did Elena lately; and maybe he wasn't entirely joking when he dropped innuendos into their conversations and, sometimes, he hoped she wasn't either when, on the rare occasion, she actually chose to flirt back.

His fingers tangled in the long, curled strands of her hair and he tugged gently, forcing her head back to expose the caramel expanse of her neck. His nose grazed the bare skin, enjoying the way her scent filled his lungs before paying special attention to her shoulders and collarbone.

Damon was getting a distinct thrill from the knowledge that it was _Bonnie Bennett's_ collarbone he was nipping at. Boy, would she be mad in the morning.

It was New Years and Bonnie had had a few too many. Actually, pretty much everyone had, himself included. They had been celebrating a holiday season with no deaths or threats of impending doom, simply enjoying each other's company before havoc returned to Mystic Falls as it was want to do. Somehow, he had found himself in a dark corner with Bonnie, who was a great deal more receptive to his advances than usual. It could be said he was taking advantage of the situation... but he hated that term. It sounded so sleazy. He preferred 'grabbing hold of an opportunity when presented.'

When else would he get permission to touch her right _here?_

His fingers grazed the underside of her breast before his palm gently kneaded the soft mound. She gasped and pressed herself closer to him, her pulse jumping underneath his lips. He smiled in satisfaction, giving her a delicate bite – enough to mark but not to break the skin.

"Why haven't we done this before?" She whispered, a leg inching its way up to wrap itself around his waist and press him closer.

"You wouldn't let me." He answered distractedly as the hand in her hair found its way to the small of her back, holding her steady while the other hand brought her second leg up to meet the first.

"Oh no..." she moaned despairingly, "What was I thinking?"

"You weren't."

She let out a breathy little sigh that tickled his ear, her fingers scraping through the hair at the nape of his neck. A shiver of anticipation shot down his spine and he lapped slowly at her clavicle causing her to make this delicious noise at the back of her throat.

"You're really good at this."

"I know."

"If they gave out awards for this, you'd win them all."

Damon chuckled. Dragging his lips up her neck to meet hers, he smiled against them and whispered, "Shh. No more talking," before kissing her soundly.

Her back was being pressed firmly against the wood panelling of the hallway, her legs wrapped securely around his waist, when she brought her arms to his chest and pushed him away just far enough to break the kiss. Breath laboured, she rested her head against the wall. "Wait."

"Do you need to breath?"

"Yeah, that too."

"What is it?"

Was she not interested? He felt the corner of his lips pull down at the notion.

Her half-lidded gaze met his and, if he didn't know any better, he would say she looked almost shy. "Can I do something to you?"

His eyebrows raced to his hairline as the sleaziest smirk spread across his face. "You can do anything you want to me."

"So I can take a picture?"

That threw him off. "A picture? I didn't realize you were into that, Bonnie."

"I take pictures all the time. But I don't tell people. So you can't tell anyone, okay?" She whispered innocently, her eyes slightly unfocused as she attempted to send him a warning look.

"Okay..." He was more than a little intrigued now, and very turned on.

Slowly, lifting her hands from his chest, she brought one up to cup the side of his face while the other began to run through his hair. Taking her time, she seemed to play with every strand before moving her other hand away from his cheek and tracing the invisible lines of his forehead.

She watched intently as the lines became more pronounced, following them with a finger to where they met at the centre of his brow as confusion got the better of him. But he remained silent until she forced him to shut his eyes as she traced his lids and felt every eyelash. "Bonnie... What are you doing?"

"I'm taking my picture. I want to remember this..."

She seemed to be taking inventory of every insignificant feature: meticulously, painstakingly so. And the longer she went on the more Damon felt he was losing his mind. The feeling of her fingers skimming across his skin – everywhere, just barely touching. His lips... the tips of his ears... his adam's apple... the blades of his shoulders... his fingers... the small of his back... his waist just above the line of his pants... And with each new spot her fingers found his chest seemed to tighten until it felt like he might burst.

If he had been dependent on air he would have died from lack of it several body parts ago.

"Bonnie, I think you've gotten a good enough picture." He managed through gritted teeth as she began to outline his abs under his shirt.

"No," she replied absently, completely focused on the task at hand, "I haven't reached your toes yet."

His head spun.

"You're crazy if you think you're getting that far fully clothed." He said, swooping in to claim her lips before she had a chance to respond. He had her upstairs and was pressing her into the mattress in a matter of seconds, the pressure in his chest easing out to be replaced by a luxurious heat.

* * *

Even with his eyes shut and his mind half asleep he could tell she was taking another one of her mental pictures. He could feel her eyes raking his 'sleeping' frame – travelling up and down then back up again.

"Stop it." He demanded, not bothering to even open his eyes.

"Stop what?" From her tone alone he could tell the liquor hadn't left her system yet.

"Doing that."

"Doing what?"

He almost opened his eyes then, just so he could roll them. "I'm not entirely sure _what_ it is you're doing, just stop it."

He felt her eyes lift from his frame, only to return moments later. "You're doing it again."

"Well how can I stop if I don't even know what I'm not supposed to be doing?"

This time he did roll his eyes, and then left them open to meet her intent gaze. "How often do you do this?"

"Sleep with you? This is the first time."

He smirked. _But it won't be the last_, he thought smugly to himself as he fought not to be distracted by thoughts of future sleepovers. "No. I mean the picture thing."

"Oh," Her eyes went dramatically wide with comprehension and his smirk shifted into a tiny smile. He was really enjoying drunken Bonnie. "I take a lot of them."

"How many have you taken of me?"

"I take them of everyone I care about."

That strange tightening in his chest returned like a pinch behind the ribs. Bonnie continued unaware of the curious affect her words were having.

"Once I took one of a bowl of spaghetti, but I had been really hungry that day and craving spaghetti so it was pretty special."

"That wasn't what I asked, Bonnie."

"What did you ask?" Her eyes, which had clouded over in recollection of the pasta, focused back on his.

"How many pictures have you taken of me?"

"I like memorizing people at different times... it makes it easier to read them."

"How many?" He pressed. Not that he cared... just curious.

"Um," she bit her lip in contemplation, "I don't know. There's... Angry Damon; Flirty Damon; Scheming Damon, which I like more than I let on; Earnest Damon; Pissed Damon, which is similar to Angry Damon but not the same; Confused Damon, which might be my favourite; Manipulative Damon, Earnest Damon's evil twin brother... and now I've got Lusty Damon and Sleepy Damon."

She nodded when she was done as if to assure herself she had gotten them all. All the while, with each new facet of him she had apparently memorized without him knowing, Damon could feel the tightening in his chest worsen until he thought it would squeeze his heart into beating again. He attempted to take in a large unnecessary breath to ease the tension, but his chest refused to expand no matter the effort.

He was pretty close to panicking – except Damon Salvatore doesn't do panic.

It had seemed to help when he touched her last time, so he brought himself closer. Lifting a hand he drew circles against her exposed shoulder and his chest loosened by a fraction.

"That's a lot of staring you've been doing. I think I might have a stalker." He joked, feigning nonchalance.

Her brow furrowed suddenly as she studied him. "I forgot that one: Damon in Denial."

"What?" He asked perplexed and a little freaked out by the steadily building pressure. But not panicked. He moved closer, taking his hand from off her shoulder so he could wrap his arm around her waist. Yeah, that helped.

"You only get it when you're lying – usually to yourself. Hence denial."

He was now close enough that they were sharing the same pillow in the middle of his double-king sized bed. He had snaked one of his legs between hers and she didn't seem to mind so he left it there, but the pressure was still so great it was beginning to create an audible hum between his ears.

"You know what's a funny word?" She asked after a moment of staring off at the ceiling, "Oogallyboogally." She laughed at her own insight before turning to him suddenly with a serious look in her eye.

"Damon... I think I'm drunk."

He laughed; the reverberations easing some of the tension out making him feel a little light-headed.

"I agree." He replied before suggesting lightly, "Maybe you should sleep it off."

"Mmm," she agreed, closing her eyes, "good idea."

He watched as she drifted off to sleep, moving a piece of hair that had slid down to obstruct her features. He studied her closely, taking in the rise and fall of her breath and the drool at the corner of her mouth... very attractive. Regardless, he found he couldn't help taking his own mental picture.


	5. Seeing Double

**Disclaimed!**

**Guys... I've got Bamon Brain right now. They're all I can think about. I blame the hug. Hopefully this Bamon kick will carry me into the next chapter of AE so you'll get an update sooner than later.**

**Anywho, this "little" story is set between seasons 2 and 3. Why? Because it's been sitting unfinished on my computer for the past TWO YEARS! Every time I went to work on it I'd feel guilty and then work on AE instead. So, just to refresh your memory, Jenna died not too long ago and Klaus was swept away by Elijah.**

**I think this is my favourite one-shot thus far. I really had fun writing it and I hope you'll love it as much as I do. And if you hadn't noticed, I kind of have an obsession with time travel.**

* * *

"Hi, Bonnie."

She shifted when she felt someone slide onto the vacant bar stool beside her, grimacing to herself when she saw who it was. She should have recognized the voice. Playing with the straw in her Ice Tea, she debated whether she should face him head on and get it over with or just walk away.

Taking a long pull on her Ice Tea, she braced herself before starting in, "I'm not doing any spells for you, so don't bother asking."

"I'm not here to ask for a spell. I'm here to ask for a favour – un-magic related, of course."

She turned toward Damon, eyebrow raised. "And this made you think I would be more willing to help?"

His lips pulled up at the corners slightly as he leaned in close. "Just hear me out."

Picking up her drink she took another long sip while glancing discretely at the clock on the wall by the bathrooms. 6:00 pm, on a Friday. Usually she'd have plans with Jeremy, but they were going through a bit of a rough patch at the moment, and to be honest, she didn't feel like dealing with it right now.

Sighing, she shrugged. "I don't have anything better to do."

"I need you to relay a message for –"

"Absolutely not," she cut him off, turning back to face the bar, her head shaking back and forth to emphasize her disagreement. "I'm not playing messenger to Elena for you. She's not –"

"_Elena?_"

It was the way he said her name, almost as though he didn't know who she was talking about, that caught her attention. Looking over at him she could see the almost palpable confusion in his eyes, the way his brow furrowed and his lips turned down. Slowly, his eyes widened as he seemed to remember something.

"No, this has nothing to do with Elena," he assured, a smile skirting across his lips as if he was in on some private joke.

Her eyes narrowed as she continued to scrutinize him. Something was up. Everything Damon did had _something_ to do with Elena. "What is it then?"

Blue raked across mocha skin as he studied her form, his features thoughtful as he conducted a silent debate with himself. Glancing away, he signalled for the bartender. "Could I get two shots of Porn-star?"

Bonnie felt her eyebrow lift for the second time that evening. "No Bourbon?"

He smiled, "You can't handle Bourbon."

Again, it was the way he spoke. It wasn't an accusation; it was a fact – like two plus two equals four. Her eyes became slits. "Why does that matter?"

The bartender placed the shots in front of him and he slid them across the bar towards her. "You're going to need these."

"I don't drink."

"Trust me. You'll like this." Another fact.

If her eyes could narrow any further they would have. "No... I don't drink _in front of you._"

"Ah," he leaned back and gave his head a little shake before mumbling something that sounded an awful lot like, "I forgot how bad it was."

"What?" she snapped, feeling her patience come to an abrupt end.

Taking a deep breath, he leaned into her personal space. "I guess we're doing this the hard way. How am I not surprised?"

There was a thought nagging at the corner of her mind, distracting her from retorting. Something was different. She had been in this situation a million times before: Damon cornering her, invading her personal bubble, demanding something of her. But something about this time felt new... it felt strangely... intimate. She couldn't put her finger on why.

He wasn't any closer than usual, but the space between them felt way more private than it ever had before. His words were what you would expect from Damon, but the tone... she couldn't place it. It wasn't affectionate, but it wasn't as off-hand as he usually was either. And his eyes... there was something about the way he was looking at her.

She felt her stomach do a short summersault and she frowned, disappointed in herself. Yeah, okay, he was gorgeous, but she had always been better than that.

"Just spit it out," she barked, with perhaps a little more venom than necessary.

"Well if you're not going to..." he said, ignoring her as he picked up one of the shots and tossed it back.

"Damon..." It was a warning.

He focused on the now empty glass in his hands when he spoke, "The message I need you to send... is to me."

"What?"

"I'm not from around here."

The metal zipper on his leather jacket cut into the flesh of her palm as she pulled him to face her. "I swear to God, Damon, if you don't start making sense soon you're brain is going to start bleeding out of your ears."

They froze, both momentarily thrown by her sudden burst of aggression. Damon's eyes were trained on her lips for longer than they should have been before he brought them up to meet hers. Finally, after what felt like ages, he spoke.

"I'm from the future."

It felt like a bucket of ice water had been dropped over her as she struggled to decide whether to take him seriously or set him on fire. Gripping his jacket tighter, she scowled, "That's not funny."

"I'm not laughing."

And he wasn't. She had only seen his expression this serious a handful of times, usually when Elena's life was in jeopardy. Frustrated and confused, she got up from the bar and began to walk away. Damon's hand was around her arm before she had taken the first step.

"This isn't some joke, Bonnie. I need you to believe me."

She met his eyes and cleared her mind before she imagined squeezing a stress ball.

"Ah!" He let go of her to cradle his head and she took that as her cue to leave.

She was halfway across the parking lot when he appeared a few feet in front of her. Coming to an abrupt stop, she squared her shoulders. "Did you want another?"

"Oh please," he waved her threat off with a motion of his hand, "that was a lucky shot. The only reason that worked was because you managed to get me right behind the eye."

"Well now I know where to aim."

"I doubt you can aim yet," he scoffed, completely non-pulsed even as she narrowed her eyes at him in concentration.

When nothing happened, she took a deep breath and focused harder. Several long seconds passed with no results, except for a dull ache in her own head. Frustrated, she shook it out. As much as she hated to admit defeat she had to know. "Why isn't it affecting you?"

"Because I'm older and stronger than the Damon you know. I do have a couple decades on him."

"Decades?" she heard herself repeat as her stomach started to drop.

"What do I need to do for you to believe me?" he asked, moving to close off the space between them.

She frowned, shrugging. "I'm not sure there's anything you _can_ do."

"See!" he exclaimed, annoyed, his pointer finger suddenly in her face. "I told you this was a bad idea!"

She swatted his hand away. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"No, not you. I didn't mean – I mean, yes you – but not _you_ – _my_ you." He stopped suddenly to take a deep breath before trying again. "Future Bonnie, if you will."

"Are you trying to tell me this was my idea?"

"Exactly! Sort of... I mean, coming to the past was my idea, but talking to you first was yours. You seemed to think that _you_ would have an easier time accepting this than anyone else."

"Well I was wrong."

His eyes lit up suddenly and a devilish smile washed across his face. "Can I get that in writing? Or better yet..." He reached behind him into his jean pocket and pulled out a phone, holding it out to her. "Could you repeat what you just said into this little mic here? I need verification for later."

She rolled her eyes. "Put the phone away."

"Unfortunate," he breathed out, but did as he was told.

Watching him, she noticed something gold glinting off his hand in the evening sun. Off his left hand... She squinted, looking closer. No... It couldn't be.

"You're married?" she exclaimed in disbelief.

Surprised he looked down at his hand before smirking at her. "Why yes I am."

"Who would want to marry you?"

His smirk widened, eyes practically sparkling with mischief. Bonnie got the strangest feeling he was laughing at her... internally.

"I could tell you but you'd probably die of shock."

Yes, he was definitely laughing at her.

Frowning, she decided to ignore that and focus on what was important. If he really was married, then he really was from the future. Unless... the ring was a fake. But why? Why go to all the trouble just to pull one over on her? She really couldn't see him doing that just for a joke, which meant... Dear God, she was going to have Damon in her life for at least a couple more decades.

"What makes you think that..."she paused, searching for the right word, "Present Damon will listen to anything I have to say?"

Understanding that this was the closest he was going to get to outward acceptance of the situation, he answered, "You're not going to be telling him anything life altering. I just need him to pick up an artefact before it gets moved off the grid for good, and once he finds it he needs to destroy it, otherwise it will come back to bite him in the ass. Big time."

"How am I supposed to convince him that he needs to do this?"

Damon let out a large unexpected breath, and it made Bonnie jump a little. "Look, this wasn't one of my more thought out plans. The world was coming down around me at the time, so you'll forgive me if I don't happen to have all the kinks worked out."

Something about that last sentence made her blood run cold. "Are you speaking literally or figuratively?"

His blue eyes as serious as she'd ever seen them, he frowned. "Literally." He reached out an empty hand towards her and said, "Give me your phone."

She hesitated a moment before reaching into her purse and handing over her phone. Watching him like a hawk she marvelled at the speed at which his fingers flew across her keypad. "My number," he said, handing it back to her. "Call me when you've spoken to him."

"You're going to be here?"

"I'm stuck here till this gets done."

Her brow furrowed in confusion. "Then why don't _you_ just get the artefact?"

He smiled sadly at that before replying, "I don't have the resources."

* * *

The sound of her doorbell sent her down the stairs and into the main foyer in less than a minute. Standing on the opposite side of her door, leaning against the frame like he owned it, was Damon Salvatore... from the future.

"You rang?" he offered as a greeting.

"Yeah." She started forward, just about to step onto the porch to join him when he brushed past her and crossed into the living room. Her mouth dropped open before she could stop it and hung there uselessly for a moment.

"You know, if you're not careful, you'll swallow a fly like that."

She shut her mouth with an audible snap, glaring at him suspiciously. "How did you get in?"

"We have a much closer relationship in the future, Bonnie. You even _trust _me." Taking in her sceptical expression he smirked. "I know, shocking."

"More like unsettling. How'd you know the invitation would still work?"

He shrugged carelessly. "I didn't. So, what was it you couldn't just tell me on the phone?"

Trying to digest the information she'd just received and work past the uncomfortable image Damon made lounging on _her_ couch; she closed the door and moved to sit on the edge of her Lazy-boy. "I'm sure you won't be surprised to discover that you were less than receptive to the idea."

"_**You want me to **_**what**_**?"Damon's eyes widened dramatically as he looked at her as if she had grown an extra head.**_

"_**It will take a couple of weeks tops. You just have to find the artefact and bring it back."**_

"**Why**_** would I do this?"**_

"_**The amount of shit I've done for you – you owe me!"**_

_**They glared at each other for a long while before he replied, "Elena's life is in danger. I can't leave –"**_

"_**Elena has Stefan!"**_

_**She realized her mistake as soon as the words left her mouth. She watched the muscles tighten throughout his body as his eyes darkened, so in an attempt to soften the blow, she added, "And me, and Caroline, Tyler, Alaric, Jeremy. I think she can spare you for a week or two."**_

_**He stood close enough that their noses were almost brushing, just so he could look her directly in the eye when he said, "No."**_

Bonnie had quickly lost her patience after that and then things had gotten ugly. "In the end, it wasn't pretty. There were words."

Damon sighed tiredly and seemed to sink further into the couch. Using the armrest as a pillow, he tilted his head back to stare sightlessly at the ceiling. "There often are with us. I guess... I'm going to have to talk to the bastard myself, aren't I?"

As amusing as it was to hear Damon refer to himself as a bastard, she couldn't help but feel trepidation at this new idea. "Aren't there cosmic rules against that sort of thing?"

"Probably. I think you mentioned something about ripping a hole in the time space continuum if something like that happened before you sent me here... I can't be sure. I wasn't really listening."

"Nice to know some things never change..." she mumbled darkly to herself after rolling her eyes.

He turned his head to smirk at her. "Come on, Bonnie. The world's already going to end. What's the worst that could happen? It ends _sooner_?" He snorted at the idea, turning his attention back to the ceiling. "At least this way we have a chance of changing things. Besides, I already screwed with history by talking to you. What's one more person?"

* * *

Inevitably, one more person became four more people.

Bonnie had shot a text to Present Damon asking to meet with him privately. He had declined when she refused to tell him why, assuming correctly that it had something to do with that ridiculous quest she wanted him to go on.

Future Damon, having no patience, had decided that if he wouldn't come to them, they would have to go to him. Knowing in her bones that it was a bad idea, but seeing no other alternative, Bonnie had reluctantly agreed.

Now, standing outside the Salvatore residence, Bonnie knocked lightly on the front door feeling dread swell under her breast with each rap of her fist. Somehow, someway – this was going to blow up in their faces.

Suddenly the door was swinging open and Elena's soft smile filled her vision. "Bonnie. Hey, I didn't know you were coming over."

Of course Elena would be here right now, when Bonnie had really hoped she wouldn't be."Yeah, sorry. I should have called first."

"No, it's fine. Are you here for me or Jeremy?" she asked, stepping to the side to allow Bonnie to pass through.

Jeremy was here too... Great. Well, it shouldn't surprise her. Both Jeremy and Elena had practically moved into the Salvatore boarding house since Jenna's death.

"Ugh," Damon sounded from behind her as he slid through the entrance before Elena could close it. "I forgot you dated Jeremy."

Bonnie noticed the use of the past tense, and felt a corresponding twinge in her heart. The foreseeable end to their relationship saddened her, but with the way things had been going lately, she couldn't say she was entirely surprised.

"Damon?" Elena did a bit of a double-take before she fully registered his presence. "Didn't you just go upstairs?"

"Probably," he answered with a distracted tilt of his lips. His eyes shot up the stairs towards his room before glancing back at her. "If you'll excuse me, I think I'll head back up there now. Bonnie?"

And before Bonnie could make any response, he took her by the hand and was dragging her towards the stairs. Eyes wide, she glanced back at Elena only to see her looking as shocked as she felt.

"Damon!" Elena called after them as they reached the first few steps, "What are you -?"

"Who are you talking to?"

_Uh-oh_, was the only thought audible in Bonnie's head as she watched Damon Salvatore appear at the top of the stairs.

The Damon beside her came to a halt with a muttered, "Shit."

Then several things happened at once.

Hearing the oath, P.D. (Present Damon) snapped his attention over to where Bonnie and F.D. (Future Damon) stood frozen on the stairs, his eyes widening to an alarming size. Elena, who had gasped dramatically at P.D.'s appearance, had now gathered herself together enough to call as calmly as possible for Stefan.

Stefan, hearing Elena's call, blurred into existence in the middle of the living room, looking around for any possible threat.

"Elena, what is it? What's wrong...?" he trailed off when his eyes finally landed on his two brothers.

"I heard yelling. Is everything o...?" Jeremy said, entering from the kitchen only to come to an abrupt halt as he took in the scene before him. "Holy shit."

"We can explain." F.D. offered lamely, but even with his eyes focused on P.D. he could feel the dark look Bonnie gave him, so he amended, "Alright, _I_ can explain."

* * *

"So what? I'm supposed to believe that you're _me_ from the_ future_?" P.D. asked, eyeing F.D. sceptically.

Everyone had gathered on the plush couches in the living room while F.D. tried to explain coherently what was going on and what needed to be done. Now he simply nodded in response to his younger self's scepticism.

"And I need to find this relic or the whole world's going to end?"

"Pretty much."

"Sorry, but this all sounds a little too Indiana Jones for my taste."

"I don't think we should be so quick to write this off, Damon," Stefan spoke, acting as the voice of reason. "Stranger things have happened."

"Exactly. How do we even know this guy is really me? It wouldn't be the first time someone had walked around here wearing someone else's face."

"He has a point," chirped Jeremy from his spot in the corner.

"It's him. No one else can be so grating without even trying," Bonnie attested.

"Ouch, Bonnie. And here I thought we were really connecting," Future Damon smiled flirtatiously at her, not at all offended by her barb, while Present Damon rolled his eyes in annoyance. Bonnie fought hard, but couldn't resist giving a small smirk in return.

"It's going to take something a little more substantial than Bonnie's word for me to believe you," P.D. said, leaning over the back of one of the couches, right between Stefan and Elena's heads.

"There has to be something. Something only _you_ know about yourself," Elena suggested, turning her head in an attempt to see the Damon behind her.

"Yeah, sure. Tell me something juicy about myself. I'm a pretty private guy, there's a lot to choose from."

"Wow." F.D. raised an eyebrow as he assessed himself. "You're that confident that I'm lying?"

P.D. simply shrugged in response.

F.D. raked his eyes around the room looking for inspiration, until they came to rest on Bonnie. He looked at her for a long moment, so long that she raised her eyebrows questioningly at him before he finally looked away. Smirking, he stared at Elena for a while too, then he let his eyes continue to stray for an appropriate amount of time before locking them on his younger self and speaking with no shame, "You have a recurring sexual fantasy involving a certain someone and her special time of the month."

A sudden hush swept across the room as everyone, minus Future Damon, become incredibly uncomfortable. Stefan was as stiff as a board while Elena blushed in embarrassment beside him, assuming as everyone else in the room was, the certain someone in question was her.

Behind them, Present Damon struggled to keep his face stoic and not let his eyes drift anywhere near Bonnie Bennett. There was something about witch's blood that drove him crazy. So yeah, he thought about it every once in a while.

Sick of the tension in the room, he snapped, "I'm a vampire. Get over it."

"That's disgusting," Bonnie felt the need to make clear.

"Don't knock it till you try it, sweetheart," F.D. said, throwing her a cheeky wink before turning his attention back to P.D. "Which, by the way, the fantasy doesn't hold a candle to the real thing."

"Seriously?" P.D. felt his eyebrows skyrocket as he registered what his future self was telling him.

"Oh yeah," F.D. confirmed with a conspiratorial grin. Elena shifted uneasily in her seat and Stefan's already clenched fists became white around the knuckles.

Present Damon smirked in response, finally allowing himself a peek at Bonnie from the corner of his eye where she was seated, her face scrunched up in repulsion.

No wonder F.D. kept looking at her like he knew what she looked like naked... because he did. Damon's smirk got wider as a certain smugness filled his chest until he noticed Jeremy watching him a little too closely. Clearing his throat, Damon brought his face back to neutral before giving his attention to the room at large.

"He's the real thing."

Stefan, looking close to imploding, breathed deeply through his nose and tried to bring focus back to the group. "Now that that's settled... Maybe we should concentrate on saving the world."

* * *

"I just don't understand why it has to be _me_, specifically," Present Damon beat at the small detail once again for what felt like the hundredth time in so many minutes.

Future Damon rubbed a hand tiredly over his features and took a deep breath.

"The artefact is with Sage at the moment. Having a personal history with the guy will be a definite advantage in our favour. We have a better chance of talking him into handing it over than anyone else would," he ground out with what little patience he still had.

This was the first time he'd ever had to deal with himself the way most people usually dealt with him and, to be honest, it was beyond irritating. It was a wonder anyone put up with him. When he got home he'd have to give his wife an extra big hug and an apology for simply existing.

_If there is a home to get to._

An uncomfortable sensation clawed at his chest and he pushed it and his pessimism roughly away. There was no if.

"So why can't _you_ go run this little errand?" P.D. pressed relentlessly.

"Sure!" F.D. exclaimed sarcastically. "Why don't you just give me complete access to your bank accounts and I'll get right on that."

P.D. laid his palms flat against the dark oak table and pushed himself forward into F.D.'s personal space, hoping to add some level of intimidation as he eyed him critically. "If you're me –"

"Something we've already established."

"-You should already have complete access to said accounts," he finished as if there had been no interruption.

"I would, if I hadn't changed them when I got married," F.D. supplied casually, knowing full well, and silently delighting in, the effect his words would have. He watched, barely retaining his smirk, as his younger self's eyebrows shot skyward.

"Married?" Stefan spoke suddenly from his perch in the corner of the room.

Elena was holed up in the library attempting to find any additional information on the artefact – some kind of key to unlock the greatest evil known to man – and Bonnie had driven Jeremy to his shift at The Grille before swinging by her house to pick up her Grimoire. That left Stefan to suffer in the company of his brothers alone... and suffering he had been.

After a good ten minutes of listening to one Damon try to weasel his way out of the quest and the other try to coerce the first one into it, Stefan had honestly tuned the conversation out. But when F.D. dropped the marriage bomb he found himself paying attention once more.

Stefan's eyes flashed to F.D.'s left hand and was surprised he hadn't noticed the simple gold band earlier.

"And no, I'm not at liberty to confirm or deny any suspicions you may have so don't bother asking who it is," F.D. shot off with a casual shrug before tagging on almost absently, "You know, the whole time space implosion mumbo-jumbo. I really don't want to fuck with my future."

"Aren't you already doing that?" P.D. felt the urge the point out.

F.D. narrowed his eyes accusingly. "More accurately, I don't want _you_ fucking with my future. You don't know how good you're going to have it."

A self-satisfied grin spread slowly across his young reflection's face, "Oh, trust me, I have an inkling."

"Oh, I'm sure you think you do." F.D. flashed a smile as empty as it was quick.

Stefan appeared beside him suddenly, every line of his body tense. "Could we focus on the task at hand? Please?"

"Sure thing, broth –" both Damons spoke simultaneously, only to stop short and glare at one another.

"I don't believe that I'm the only one who found that creepy," Stefan commented dryly, before turning his attention to the map spread out on the table between his brothers. "Now where did you say Sage was exactly?"

Future Damon let his finger draw a circular pattern around the upper half of South America. "I traced him to somewhere around here. My best guess is Colombia, but Brazil is also a strong possibility."

"I'm not running around half of South America on a wild goose chase," Damon scoffed disdainfully. "Brazil is massive. It could take months to search and even then we have no guarantee Sage is even there. Waste. Of. Time."

F.D. was seriously contemplating snapping his younger self's neck. "And what would you suggest?"

P.D. shrugged. "Get Bonnie to do a locater spell."

"Brilliant idea," F.D. ground out derisively, "we just need something of Sage's. Funny, but I don't remember exchanging knick-knacks the last time we saw him."

"Then your memory is a little rusty old man, 'cause I know exactly what we can use." P.D. flashed out of sight and then a few seconds later reappeared shoving something small and metallic in Future Damon's face.

F.D. scowled, ripping the item out of his hand to get a proper look at it.

"What is it?" Stefan questioned.

"A lighter," F.D. answered, flipping the black and silver object over and over in his hand. "I forgot about this thing."

"Clearly," P.D. snarked.

Sage had left it behind on one of his infrequent visits and Damon had kept it simply because he liked the look of it. He hadn't seen it since the 1970s, no wonder he couldn't remember it.

"This will do," Future Damon concluded, setting it down on the table beside the map.

* * *

Present Damon took a mouthful of Bourbon and glowered.

They were at it again.

He had been playfully bothering Elena as she attempted to scan a heavy tome for useful information when he noticed them from the corner of his eye.

Bonnie, seated on the couch, had a laptop perched precariously on her lap while the older, more irritating version of him hovered over her shoulder. He whispered in her ear, leaned forward and typed something on the computer then pointed at the screen. Bonnie bit her lip to keep from laughing and shook her head, hitting the backspace button repeatedly.

Annoying much?

It wasn't even the fact that F.D. was obviously flirting with her. Over the past day and a half spent planning out the finer details of the quest Damon had witnessed his future self flirting shamelessly with both Bonnie and Elena in equal turns. Heck, F.D. had even flirted with Caroline when she made the mistake of stopping by the boarding house to see why everyone kept replying, _busy_, to all of her texts.

It had not been fun trying to explain why there were two Damons to Vampire Barbie.

But whatever, Damon Salvatore would always be a massive flirt. That was no surprise.

It was Bonnie.

Bonnie effing Bennett.

F.D. teased her, she teased back. F.D. flirted and... well, she didn't flirt back, but she definitely didn't shoot him an evil look or give him an aneurism. She seemed to prefer the future Damon. And it _pissed. Him. Off_.

How could she like him and not _him_? They were the same effing person!

Tossing back the rest of his drink, enjoying the feel of the liquid as it burned its way down his throat, he watched intently as his doppelganger began to play idly with a lock of Bonnie's hair. She turned her head and gave him a curious look. He smiled charmingly back and she gave him a small, amused smile in return.

Damon froze.

That, right there, was the last fucking straw.

He slammed his empty glass down, 'causing Elena to jump and look up at him. Not paying the cute brunette any mind as she called after him in shock, he made his way over to the couch.

"You two love birds look cozy," he commented once he was standing by the edge of the couch.

Bonnie rolled her eyes and focused on her laptop. F.D. smirked at him and Damon felt his blood start to boil under his skin.

Resisting the urge to give him the finger, Damon flopped onto the couch right beside his little witch and attempted to get a look at the computer screen. "What are you working on?"

"I'm trying to find you a flight," Bonnie answered, still focused on the task at hand.

Irritated, he snapped, "And that takes two people?"

"I'm here to offer valuable suggestions," answered F.D. smugly.

"Or not so valuable," she teased, turning to give him a smirk over her shoulder before directing her attention back to the screen.

_Oh, so _he_ gets eye contact, _Damon bristled internally.

If there was one thing Damon hated it was double standards.

"Well I could do that," he reasoned, staring hard at the side of Bonnie's head. "I'm full of useful suggestions. And _I'm_ the one going on this trip so shouldn't I be the one choosing the flight?"

"Technically, _you_ still are choosing the flight," F.D. had to stick his unwanted two cents in.

The soft sound of Bonnie chuckling prickled at Damon's senses and he twisted in his seat so he could look F.D. straight in the eye when he told exactly where he could shove those two cents. Then he noticed it. His evil twin was still playing with a strand of Bonnie's hair.

Well that was just not acceptable.

Frowning in displeasure, Damon reached forward and gently yanked the hair from his grasp.

"Hey!" Bonnie yelped suddenly, placing a hand against her scalp and glaring at the side of his head.

Damon ignored her and instead gave his future self a meaningful look. "Maybe you should go do something somewhere else."

F.D. offered up a knowing smile. "I like where I am right now."

"How about you two find a flight and I go somewhere else?" suggested Bonnie darkly.

"No," both Damons snapped, then F.D. sped around the couch to seat himself on Bonnie's other side.

"You should stay here, Bonnie, with me," F.D. said, draping a casual arm on top of the couch behind Bonnie's back. She raised a brow at him, but made no move to push his arm away.

Damon glared at the offensive limb, then the back of Bonnie's head, then the limb again, brainstorming a way to get rid of it. If he didn't know any better he'd think F.D. was trying to piss him off on purpose. His frown grew deeper as he insisted, "Bonnie doesn't need you. She has me."

If he kept frowning like this he'd turn into Stefan.

F.D. just smiled. "Maybe we should ask Bonnie who she wants to work with?"

Bonnie tossed up her hands in surrender. "Okay, I'm not really sure what's happening here, but I don't think it has anything to do with booking a flight," she lowered her hands and alternated her glare between both of them, "so whatever weird type of pissing contest you two are having, you can leave me out of it. Understood?"

Shifting the laptop off her lap and onto F.D.'s, she got up and marched away. Both men's eyes followed after her before their attention shifted and they glared at one another.

"That was your fault," they accused simultaneously.

* * *

A week later found Present Damon, puffed with self-gratification, placing a heavy looking golden apple in the middle of the living room coffee table.

"Is that it?" Bonnie questioned from her spot on the couch.

"Indeed it is," he answered, throwing himself down beside her before continuing off-hand, "Not much of a quest. Didn't even have to break a sweat to get it. Went to a couple of parties, killed a few baddies, had a torrid love affair with a feisty Brazilian witch." He waggled his eyebrows at Bonnie and she scoffed in disgust. "All in all, not a bad time."

Bonnie felt Elena edge forward on the cushion to her right. "It's just an apple. Are you sure this is it?"

"Positive," Future Damon chimed from across the room where he was leaning against the wall. The light from the fireplace cast shadows over his features making him look sombre as he stared down at the cursed fruit. "It's more than just an apple made of gold; it's the Apple of Discord."

"Wait, like from the Greek myth?" Jeremy asked, moving to get a better look.

"That would be the one."

"So the great evil is chaos?" Bonnie hypothesized.

Both Damon's shot her an impressed look, but it was the one on her left that said, "My little bird knows her mythology."

Annoyance flared in her chest and she frowned at him, "I'm not your little anything."

Present Damon had gotten oddly possessive of her a little while before he left for Brazil. He kept calling her 'my Bonnie,' or 'my little witch' or worst of all 'my little bird.' She did her best to discourage it but he seemed determined to stake some sort of claim on her.

"You kind of are," he insisted stubbornly with a tilt of his head.

Jeremy cleared his throat abruptly and stared at them hard. Bonnie tried not to fidget or feel like she had done anything wrong, because she hadn't. Beside her, Damon barely batted an eyelash and she had to fight the sudden urge to give him an aneurism.

"Back to the apple," Stefan spoke, refocusing everyone's attention, "while you were gone Elena found out we need a spell to destroy the key."

"No shocker there."

"I figured it would probably lead to something like that," Bonnie agreed, "so I started researching as soon as all this started and a couple nights ago Damon and I stumbled upon the right spell."

Present Damon narrowed his eyes at his older self lounging against the wall. "And what does this spell do?"

Future Damon, since he was being glared at so directly, decided to answer, "It's supposed to call upon the flames of Tartarus and melt the key down to nothing."

P.D. slid his gaze back to Bonnie and examined her from under his dark lashes. "Sounds powerful. Think you're up for it?"

"I kind of have to be."

"No you don't," he countered, surprising her and pretty much everyone else in the room. "We have the apple. It's ours now. You can do this spell whenever you want. It doesn't have to be right now."

She looked over at Future Damon. His face was completely blank, eyes downcast – he wasn't giving anything away, but Bonnie could sense it. He wanted her to do it. He wanted to go home. He didn't belong here.

"I think it does."

* * *

A few days after the destruction of the Apple and Bonnie was still feeling weaker than a newborn kitten. Future Damon made it a point to stop by her place with a large thermos of her favourite soup. He claimed it would help build up her strength again.

Watching her take her first spoonful, he held his breath. He loved watching Bonnie eat his cooking. She made it a full body experience.

Eyes closed, she sighed and melted back into her sofa.

"So?" he pressed.

"This is the best thing I've ever put in my mouth," she replied earnestly and he secretly swelled with pride. She gave him a disbelieving stare," Did you really make this?"

"Scout's honour," he said, holding up four fingers before leaning close and whispering dramatically, "The secret ingredient is _love_."

Bonnie, who had been in the process of swallowing another spoonful, started coughing. He reached over, patting her back and once she caught her breath, she slide further down the sofa to glare at him. "Shut up, Damon! I almost choked."

"Sorry. I'll work on my comedic timing." He was aiming for sincerity but the grin on his face ruined the overall effect.

Making Bonnie laugh would always be counted as an accomplishment, even when she ended up choking.

She shot him a sly look from the corner of her green eyes. "So, we're good friends in the future, huh?"

"I couldn't tell you if we were," he answered vaguely with a careless half shrug.

"You don't have to tell me. I know."

"Oh, do you?" He raised a brow, amused, "And how do you know this?"

"Well for one thing, you know what my favourite soup is and you made it for me from scratch," she answered smugly before sobering, "And for another, you're just _different_ from him – Present Damon, I mean. You treat me differently and you talk to me like I'm an actual person and not just a means to an end."

"I never thought of you as a means to an end, Bonnie."

"Really? 'Cause you could have fooled me."

"Yeah, well, I probably shouldn't have told you that, but now that the cat's out of the bag, you should know that I like to talk a big talk. That doesn't necessarily make everything I say true. You were never a means to an end... except for maybe when I was trying to open Katherine's tomb."

Damon didn't apologize for it and Bonnie didn't expect him to.

She played idly with her spoon, seemingly lost in her thoughts for a moment before starting, "Present Damon really doesn't like you. At first I thought it was because he didn't trust that you were really him, but he just _really doesn't like you._"

"That's fine. I don't like him either."

"And you don't find that the least bit ironic? Considering you're the same person."

"Don't get me wrong, I like myself as I am now," he pointed at himself to clarify who he was speaking about, "but I don't like who I was at this stage in time and _he_, Present Damon, doesn't like himself at all."

Bonnie's eyes widened as she absorbed this new information and she looked down sightlessly at the bowl in her lap.

Damon had to bite his lip to keep from smirking.

His wife was going to flay him alive when she found out how much meddling he had actually done. But hey, if it bought him a few more years happily in love with Bonnie and few less pinning stupidly over Elena, then why not?

Yes, he was being a manipulative bastard to get what he wanted. What was new?

Speaking of Elena...

"You know," he began, breaking Bonnie out of her reverie, "seeing everything from the outside; watching myself go after Elena again and again only to be rejected... it's surprisingly pathetic."

"Surprisingly?" Bonnie echoed with a tiny grin and a lifted brow, "Did it at least pay off?"

He caught himself right before saying no. Sending her a cheeky smile, he wagged a reprimanding finger in her face. "Ah, you clever girl. I'm not telling you who my wife is. You're just going to have to find out the old fashioned way."

She groaned and frowned down at her soup.

"It's killing you, isn't it?" he couldn't help but tease.

"It is!"

* * *

Everyone was gathered at the Salvatore boarding house to send Future Damon off. Most people had said their goodbyes already. Bonnie... was trying not to dwell.

Her strength fully returned, she read over the counter spell for the umpteenth time. It was unnerving seeing her own writing on something knowing that she had yet to write it.

"Do you have your talisman?" she asked

"Sure do."

Future Damon reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue scrap of fabric. It was charred around the edges, and the blue was all faded and discoloured.

Taking it out of his hand, she ran the fabric over her fingers in shock.

This... this was hers.

This was her baby blanket.

Her Grams had made it for her. It had been her very first present and she had loved it and carried it everywhere she went in her formative years. One day her mom, distracted, had placed it on the kitchen counter too close to the stove while she was cooking and it had burst into flames. Almost burned the entire kitchen down too. Her mom had managed to put the fire out but this tiny scrap of fabric was all that was left of Bonnie's baby blanket.

She had cried for days afterwards and the only way she'd settle down was if her parents let her hold what was left of her blanket. Eventually they had just let her keep it.

It was one of her most cherished possessions. She wouldn't part with this for anything.

Why would she give it to Damon to use in a spell?

The talisman acted as a seal for the spell. It allowed Damon to stay in the past for as long as he needed. It also gave him a way back. The seal needed to be broken, or destroyed, in order for the counter spell to be performed.

It just didn't make any sense. Why would she sacrifice one of the few things she had of her Grams in order to bring Damon back home...? Unless...

No. No way.

"I guess that ruined the surprise, huh?"

She must have looked as stunned as she felt because his blue gaze when it met hers was knowing. She sensed the others shifting around her to get a better look at what she was holding, trying to figure out why she seemed to be in a state of shock.

"At least it was your fault and not mine," F.D. continued with a conspiratorial smile.

"What's her fault? I don't understand," Stefan chirped from her left.

"Yeah. What the hell is he talking about, Bonnie? What is that thing?" Present Damon questioned from where he hovered over her right shoulder.

"It looks familiar," Elena commented a few feet away.

"It's nothing," Bonnie said once she finally found her voice. "Just a piece of fabric."

"Then why are staring at it like it's the Holy Grail?" the younger Damon probed relentlessly.

"Maybe because I expected something flashier from you," she answered, twisting so she could make it clear she was addressing P.D.

His eyebrows shot up in response. He hadn't been the one to hand her the piece of cloth, but he was oddly pleased at having her acknowledge the fact that he and F.D. were the same person.

"It is a little lackluster for me," he admitted.

"Worth more than gold," F.D. chimed.

Bonnie flushed suddenly and P.D.'s eyes narrowed, flicking back and forth between her and his older reflection. They knew something that he didn't, and he didn't like it.

"So what happens now?" Jeremy asked.

"Now, I need everyone to back up and give me some space so I can do this spell," Bonnie directed firmly.

Slowly, everyone dispersed around the room. Bonnie fiddled with the small square of material she still held, knowing what she had to do, but hesitating.

"You know, you never did say goodbye to me," F.D. pointed out and Bonnie breathed out some of her tension.

"I figured I didn't have to considering you'd still technically be here. It seems like I'm stuck with you for a long time to come," she hinted, needing confirmation on what she thought she knew yet very much aware of the double set of vampire ears tuned into the conversation.

He got the message, his eyes boring into hers as he nodded solemnly, "Yeah, you really are. But that doesn't have to be a bad thing."

She lowered her gaze to the fabric in her hands, not knowing what to say when he continued, "Just don't go easy on me. I like a challenge."

Blushing, she nodded absently. From the corner of her eye she noticed P.D. drop the pretense of reading and turn his head to look at them, his brow crumpled in confusion.

* * *

"Good riddance," Damon exclaimed as soon as his doppelganger had disappeared.

"You do realize you're talking about yourself, right?" Stefan stated, clearly amused.

"Yes and the world is only big enough for one Damon Salvatore at a time."

"Agreed," Bonnie said, staring at the empty spot the future Damon had occupied moments before.

He had been pretty decent – undeniably Damon in every way that counted, but still decent. He was easy to talk to and fun to be around and she could see herself becoming friends with him... but marrying the guy? What had she been thinking?

And she remembered, little more than week ago asking him,

"_**Who would want to marry you?"**_

Yeah. He had definitely been laughing at her.


	6. The Road Trip From Hell

**Disclaim!**

**Here is the aftermath to what occurred in the previous chapter. It's a lot different from how most of you probably imagined things going down, but I'm hoping you'll still really enjoy it. I had a lot of fun writing it which might have something to with how I got it out so fast.**

**Damon has a line in this story, **"I'm just being honest; isn't that better than a gentleman?"** which is taken pretty much word for word from a song by Down With Webster called She's Dope. I also mention a Peanut Butter Banana Honey Milkshake in this story that actually exists, so if you like that combination of flavours I highly recommend getting yourself to the nearest Cheesecake Factory and buying one. DE-lish. lol.**

**Also, I'm not sure if there are mechanics at pit stops along a highway, so for the purpose of this story I'll ask that you suspend disbelief and just say that there are.**

**Last note - I'm currently obsessed with the song Sweater Weather by The Neighbourhood and feel I have to share it with the world. So, to be fair, I feel I should ask you guys what your current musical obsession is.**

* * *

"Are you sure we weren't supposed to take that exit?" Bonnie asked for what felt like the umpteenth time.

"Positive, now stop asking."

Bonnie rolled her eyes and turned to look at the passing greenery. She had the strongest feeling they were headed the wrong way and her instincts were usually pretty good about these sorts of things, but whatever. She really didn't feel like getting into another argument with Damon 'the-most-stubborn-man-on-the-planet' Salvatore.

Her future husband...

Bonnie shuddered and tried to think of something else, but much like any other time the thought had crept up over the past month, she couldn't.

_Just because I end up with him in one version of the future doesn't mean I have to end up with him in all of them_, she reasoned to herself. But therein lay the dilemma: did she want to change her future?

The answer should have been obvious, but it wasn't. The future Bonnie had loved Damon enough to sacrifice something priceless, something that could never be replaced, to bring him back to her.

And secretly, Bonnie just wanted to be happy. She couldn't imagine Damon being the one to make her happy, but she knew she would never have married him if he didn't, so she guessed he must be doing something right in the future.

An hour passed quietly. Bonnie shifted in her seat, stretching her leg to reach under the dash for her shoe. She had kicked them off to sit cross legged around hour three of the journey and now she'd managed to get one back on, but the other refused to flip over so she could get her foot in. Giving up on being lazy, she bent over to use her hands.

"What are you doing?" Damon asked amused.

"How about you pay attention to the road and never mind what I'm doing," Bonnie bit back, wiggling in her seat as she struggled with her shoe.

Humour gone, he demanded, "Don't ruin the leather."

Maybe it was the car he should be marrying. He seemed to love it more than he loved Elena.

She rolled her eyes and made a show of twisting in her seat as she attempted to get comfortable just so she could piss him off.

They were going to have to stop soon. She couldn't stay cooped up in this car for very much longer. She had packed them both a lunch so they wouldn't have to stop to eat, but now she was wishing she hadn't. Minus the quick stops for gas she hadn't really gotten time to stretch her legs and she was really starting to feel it.

Bonnie scanned the road ahead for a pit stop, but couldn't see one. The feeling they were going the wrong way tugged at her subconscious again and she frowned.

"I really feel like this isn't right."

"Bonnie," Damon gritted through his teeth, "trust me. I know where I'm going."

"It wouldn't hurt if we just stopped and asked for directions," she insisted, not for the first time.

"I'm a hundred and seventy years old! I think I know how to get to the fucking border without directions!" he snapped suddenly, "This isn't my first time at the rodeo, sweetheart."

She seriously contemplated giving him an aneurism, but didn't want to get herself killed if he lost control of the car just so she could enjoy watching him wither in pain for a few seconds.

"When was the last time you were there?"

He didn't answer, just stared at the road in front of him. That did not bode well...

"Were there even roads the last time you went?"

He rolled his eyes and tossed her a glare. "Yes, Bonnie, _there were roads_. I'm not a million years old, thank you."

They spent the next half hour in silence.

There had been a weird tension between them ever since the whole Future Damon episode and it only seemed to get worse the longer they spent in one another's company. It was like they didn't know how to talk to each other anymore, so they just argued... All. The. Time.

Over every. Little. Thing.

The tension may have been coming more from her than him, considering he was in the dark about their supposed future marriage. She had been snapping at him with no provocation lately, so it was possible he was just responding to whatever hostile energy she was directing his way.

Resting her head against her window, Bonnie absently read the signs as they passed until one in particular caught her eye.

Feeling the muscles in her body begin to knot, she turned stiffly to stare at Damon's profile, her eyes narrowing of their own accord.

"Did that sign just say Philadelphia?" she asked, not because she needed the confirmation but because she wanted to hear him say it.

He said nothing, his face unnaturally blank. He was freakishly still and gripping the steering wheel so hard she was surprised he wasn't crushing the metal...

"Damon..." she pressed, "Why are we near Philadelphia?"

He ignored her completely, his blue orbs resolutely glued to the road.

Somehow she managed to keep her voice level when she said, "Stop the car."

The car remained in motion. He made no move to slow down or pull over.

She ground her teeth and took a deep breath through her nose. She was _this_ close popping his head like a pimple.

"Stop the car, _now_! I want to get out."

"We're fine," he finally spoke. His voice was so low she almost didn't hear him. As it was, she wished she hadn't.

Placing her hand against the dash, she closed her eyes and concentrated. It took a little while, but eventually she felt the car begin to slow.

Damon cursed harshly under his breath then said, "Whatever the hell it is you're doing right now, stop it. You're making a big deal out of nothing."

Her eyes flew open, blazing fire and brimstone down on him. "Pull over now or I will end you."

He flinched and, for once, did as he was told. The car was beginning to crawl to a stop on its own anyways. Luckily there was very little traffic on the highway, so it didn't take much manoeuvring to get to the shoulder.

Bonnie had her seatbelt unbuckled and was halfway out the door before he could put the Camaro in park. She heard Damon climb out of the car behind her and she began to walk towards the forest that lined the highway.

"Where do you think _you're_ going?" he called after her.

"Away from you," she answered simply, walking a little quicker.

"And what's that going to accomplish other than getting you lost?"

She spun abruptly on her heel and glowered at the picture he made leaning casually against his ride watching her, his arms crossed and resting lightly on the roof.

"Speaking of getting lost," she retorted waspishly, "we just spent the last five and a half hours driving in the wrong direction! Do you even know where we are right now?"

"We're not lost, Bonnie, we're just a little off course," he replied matter-of-factly with a flippant gesture of his hand, "easily fixed."

She couldn't decide if it was his tone or his overall blasé attitude that pissed her off more.

"You're right, it is easily fixed. In fact, it could have been fixed hours ago if you had stopped and asked for directions like I told you to!"

Damon's relaxed exterior shattered and he bit out mockingly, "Alright then Glinda, why don't you wave your little wand and magic some up for us?"

Her hands balled tightly into fists and she stared him down. "I was _going_ to bring my map. Remember? I said, 'should I bring this?' And you said, 'we don't need it. I know where I'm going. Trust me.' Well that's the last time I'll be making that mistake."

His eyes narrowed at her before his gaze flicked to left and landed on the passing traffic. Lips turned down, he began, "Whatever. What's done is done; no use crying over it. So if you're going to keep harping on about this I'll leave you here and you can walk back to Virginia." Then taking in the overcast skies above them, he added absently, "Looks like rain."

Without a second glance her way he got back into the car.

She was going to marry this douche-bag?

Like hell _that_ was happening. _Like hell._ Her future self had to have been drugged or delusional to have allowed that to happen.

She marched her way over to the driver's side and glared at him through the window, "I'm driving."

He looked completely flummoxed, his head titled to one side as if to hear her better. "What?"

"I'm not getting back in this car unless I'm driving."

His brow crumpled even further and he rolled down the window. "Did you not hear me when I said I'd leave you here?"

She raised an unaffected brow. "Do you really think I'd let the car start if you tried to?"

He frowned and she could see the cogs turning in his head as he weighed his options. "Fine," he eventually growled, opening the door none to gently. Bonnie had to jump back not to be hit by it and Damon made it a point to bump her shoulder roughly on his way to the passenger side.

Petty much?

* * *

They hadn't been driving for long when Bonnie noticed something was off about Damon's Camaro. It didn't feel as smooth as it had before they had pulled over and –

"What's that sound?" Damon questioned ominously from the passenger seat.

"Uh..."

The engine was making a distressing sputtering noise. It definitely hadn't been doing that earlier. There was really only one explanation, but Bonnie was hoping desperately that that wasn't the case. It _was_ possible that this was completely unrelated to the spell she had cast earlier and –

The car gave a colossal gasp and the engine gave out. Bonnie just managed to get onto the shoulder before they rolled to a stop. The vehicle behind them had to swerve at the last second to avoid slamming into them and they honked their appreciation.

Both Bonnie and Damon remained still for a long, tense moment. Then eventually, Bonnie spoke, her voice soft and reluctant, "I may have... permanently damaged your car."

"Of course you did," he muttered darkly, before opening his door and stepping outside.

She groaned loudly then followed after him. "I didn't know the spell had lasting effects."

He whirled to face her, arms flung wide in exasperation. "Then why the hell did you cast it, Sabrina?"

"BECAUSE YOU WOULDN'T STOP THE DAMN CAR!" Catching herself, she took a deep, calming breath and tried to relax.

His gaze went to the steadily darkening skies and he nodded mockingly. "Right, right, of course. Blame Damon. Isn't that what you always do?"

Bonnie opened her mouth to speak, but he steamrolled over her, all the while peeling off his leather jacket and aggressively throwing it onto the passenger seat. "This is just typical. You play around with magic with no idea what the end result will be and then you don't own up to the consequences."

She felt her jaw slacken stupidly. He couldn't be serious.

"Are you shitting me right now? You just described yourself."

He actually had the audacity to look shocked. "How do you figure that?"

"You're _constantly_ doing stuff without thinking about the consequences! And half the shit I cast is only because you ask me to, you hypocritical ass-hat!"

He stiffened and glared darkly at her. "There you go blaming me again."

Crossing around the car to stand a few feet in front of him she folded her arms over her chest. "And what's this BS about me not owning up to things? I owned up to the car, didn't I? Unlike you, who I have yet to hear an apology from."

"For what?" he exclaimed, his hands flexing in front of him as if he were thinking about strangling her.

"A multitude of things! Getting us lost for one –"

"Okay, I admit it! This isn't where I planned on taking us! But it isn't about the destination, Bonnie. It's about the journey."

"That's such bullshit. Why can't you admit that you made a mistake?"

"I just did!" he cried, "Or did you not hear me? Do you only hear what you want to hear, is that it?"

"Clearly not, otherwise I would be hearing, 'I'm sorry.'"

"Give me something worth apologizing for –"

"How about my Grams?"

"Are you still on about that?"

The wind was picking up and whipping her hair into her face. Shoving it roughly out of the way, she glared at him. "She was my grandmother, Damon! I will always be on about that!"

"She acted of her own free will! You both did. So don't put that on me!" he growled, his eyes starting to bleed red, the veins just becoming visible under his skin. "I am _so sick_ of being held responsible for every little thing that goes wrong in _your_ life."

"Maybe I wouldn't blame you if you ever held yourself accountable for your own actions! We opened that tomb so you could get _your_ girlfriend who wasn't even there! Turns out, she didn't even like you!"

She barely had to time to lift her arm up to shield herself before he was barrelling into her. Luckily she had managed to muster enough energy to send him reeling into the trees, but he had effectively shoved her off her feet.

Her back hit the ground hard knocking the wind out of her. She struggled to get a mouthful of air past the pain in her lungs and get back up as quickly as possible, but halfway to standing, he was on her again, driving her into the dirt.

His teeth pierced sharply through the skin of her neck and she had to work hard to clear her mind from the pain enough to start popping the blood vessels in his brain. He cried out and rolled off of her, cradling his head. Bonnie seized the opening and moved to stand, but Damon yanked her back by the root of her hair and refused to let go.

Yelping, she placed her hand on his and let it _burn_. He roared in agony, releasing her abruptly and she spun onto her knees to face him, imagining him being pushed down into the earth by a great weight. He struggled violently against the invisible force pinning him down and every time he managed to inch forward he was slammed into the earth again. She pictured cracking one of his ribs and he groaned in anguish.

That one was for Grams.

"When the fuck did you learn how to do that?" he questioned between clenched teeth.

Not answering, she instead stared him down and demanded, "Are you done yet?"

"Are _you?_"

Freeing him from the binding spell, she watched warily as he sagged, exhausted, against the grass beside her. He placed his hands gently on his cracked rib and winced, his breath coming out in short huffs.

Time stretched and once she was confident he wouldn't attack her anymore she allowed herself to lie down beside him.

She was lucky they were on the grass and not the gravelled shoulder. As it was, the earth wasn't very forgiving. She was going to have massive bruises for sure.

Thinking about it, she probably shouldn't have brought up Katherine. It was a low blow. Of course, Damon needed to be on the receiving end of a low blow every now and again otherwise he had a tendency of running away from hard truths.

Still, she couldn't silence the sound of Future Damon's voice in her head confessing,

"_**... **_**he,**_** Present Damon, doesn't like himself at all."**_

And she had gone and thrown the fact that the woman he had spent the past 145 years loving, didn't even like him.

And now she felt like a heel.

She snuck a peek at him from the corner of her eye. He stared blankly at the heavy, black clouds above them and she wondered what was going through his head. His breathing had evened out and he didn't look to be in any pain so his rib must have healed. The way his hands were resting against his ribcage was pulling up the hem of his gray shirt and exposing a sliver of his chiselled stomach.

She felt her cheeks heat and frowned. It was really very unfair that someone so unpleasant could be so attractive. Unfair and irritating.

Closing her eyes she listened to the sound of the traffic passing to her right.

Oh God, hopefully no one had seen them. She had been so focused on Damon she forgot they were out in the open, on the side of the road no less.

Great. Something else to add to the list of things to worry about.

She suddenly felt overwhelmed. She had no idea how to handle Damon; she had no idea how she wanted to handle Damon...

If she could at least make it through the rest of the trip without another argument, she'd be happy. Of course, that would require her not provoking and him not being a douche – both very unlikely, but she felt better having a goal.

Turning her attention up to the dark sky, she sighed. It was only two in the afternoon, but it already felt like eight. This day could not get any longer.

Bonnie gasped when a raindrop landed right in the middle of her forehead quickly followed by another. The sky didn't waste any time in proving her wrong, the rain coming down at a steady pace.

"Well if this isn't the day that just keeps on giving," Damon grumbled from beside her.

* * *

Pushing his newly broken-down Camaro on the shoulder of a highway in the middle of a rainstorm with only Bonnie Bennett for company was Damon's idea of a nightmare. Some road trip this turned out to be.

His hand slipped from its position on the trunk and he tried wiping it on his soaked jeans before putting it back.

There was a pit stop a few minutes up the road. Damon had read a sign for it not long before the Camaro had choked and died.

It would be less frustrating if he could just use his strength and speed to dash the car over there, but, as Bonnie was so quick to point out when he suggested the idea, anyone could see them. And then she had gone on about how they had already risked too much by fighting and he had stopped listening.

She had the right of it though, so now he was pushing his ride at 1/8th the speed that he could and Bonnie was beside him pretending to do the same. She had her hands pressed flat against the trunk, leaning some of her weight forward and walking with her head bowed, but she was putting no real effort into moving the car. It didn't matter. It was the illusion that they were after and anyone passing by would see two people struggling with a stalled car.

Damon snuck a glance to his right and watched Bonnie. Her hair was curling slightly as it became weighted with water, clinging to skin of her face and neck. He could see the wound from where he had bitten her through the strands of her hair. He had offered some of his blood, but she had scoffed and shot him a dirty look, so he'd had to assume she didn't want any.

He imagined it must be stinging like a bitch, though. He studied her features closely looking for signs of pain, but couldn't find any. She was chewing on her bottom lip thoughtfully, lost in her own world.

That fight had been... was it sick that he had kind of enjoyed it?

Probably.

He had to hand it to the little witch; she was one of the few people he could go toe to toe with without worrying about breaking. He could get angry and go at her and not hold anything back and after the dust had settled she'd still be standing. He couldn't push her around and on the one hand that really pissed him off, but on the other, he secretly loved it.

He could be aggressive with her in a way he couldn't with anyone else except for Stefan and Katherine. Caroline would just walk away if he ever tried to start something and Elena...

One of the most appealing things about Elena was her humanity, but it made her fragile in a way that none of the others were. She had no way to defend herself and Damon had to remember to be gentle with her.

But with Bonnie he could just be himself, in whatever ugly form that took, and she could handle it. It was liberating not having to temper himself.

Recently something had changed though. Bonnie had been acting weird for a while now. Ever since her BFF Future Damon had gone back to his own time.

Damon could feel a frown pulling at his lips and he shifted his focus back to the Camaro.

It had something to do with that blue whatever-the-hell-it-had-been that F.D. had given her for the spell. It had some sort of significance that only the two of them could understand. Damon knew it in his gut and it was grating on his last nerve being left in dark like this.

He'd tired asking her about it a couple of times to no avail. She'd change the topic by picking an argument and he wouldn't realize what she'd done until she was safely tucked away at home where he couldn't get to her.

What was it she was hiding?

He hadn't realized he'd stopped moving until he heard the small 'oof' from his right as Bonnie walked into the car.

Damon chuckled softly and offered an unapologetic shrug at her accusing glare. "Maybe if you were actually pushing that wouldn't have happened."

He inched the Camaro forward and felt something go _pop_ in his brain. He squeezed his eyes shut briefly before tossing her a glare of his own and she mirrored his earlier shrug.

That saucy little minx.

"You know," he pointed out casually as he continued pushing his car, "you're one trick is getting a little old, Pony."

His foot caught on something unexpectedly and he toppled gracelessly into the trunk. The sound of Bonnie laughing under her breath beside him made him roll his eyes.

"Was that new enough for you?" she responded cheekily.

Righting himself he took a moment to shove her. Not with any real strength, just hard enough to make her stumble awkwardly to the side.

"You're such a child," she muttered once she got back to the car.

"That would be the eternal youth kicking in."

Bonnie ducked her head to the side to hide the small smile curling at her lips, but she wasn't quick enough. He saw it anyways and grinned. It was always such an accomplishment getting a positive reaction out of Bonnie; it was hard not to feel pleased with himself.

That was the most civil they'd been in the last month. Not through any fault of his own, for once. Lately, instead of the usual indifference she sent his way, Bonnie had been outright hostile and was often the one provoking fights.

Damon, for his part, had been trying to be a bit nicer... at least at first. Eventually she wore him down.

It was just...

Seeing her interact the way she had with F.D. had done something to him. It had proved that the two of them were actually capable of being friends; that it was possible for Bonnie Bennett to laugh at his jokes and share his secrets and want to spend time with him.

And he wanted that. He wanted it the same way he wanted everything else in his life; the only way he knew _how_ to want things: desperately.

So it was only a matter of time.

Yeah, Bonnie seemed determined to keep him at an arm's length and she knew exactly how to set him off, but he was getting his second wind now and she was bound to cave first. Simple as that.

* * *

Damon realized, as he forced himself to un-slacken his jaw, that he had never seen Bonnie eat before. He would remember if he had. As it was, he would not be making the mistake of taking her out in public to eat ever again.

It was indecent.

There had been an old fashioned diner at the pit stop, so Damon had suggested an early supper while they waited for the onsite mechanic to look at his Camaro.

Bonnie was in the process of devouring a turkey club with a side of fries like it was her job. With each bite she would close her eyes and seemingly experience the flavours with every molecule of her body.

And then she'd make these noises.

They were tiny, muffled little sounds at the back of her throat – she probably had no idea she was making them – but to a vampire's ears they were loud. He had to stamp down the urge to glance around the diner and make sure no one else was hearing this.

Watching her, he ate his own meal mindlessly and when she finally stopped long enough to take sip of her Peanut Butter Banana Honey milkshake he asked, "Good?"

"So good," she replied earnestly, "The best thing I've put in my mouth since your –"

She stopped abruptly, shoving a fry in her mouth and looking everywhere but him. He felt his eyebrows lift of their own accord.

"Since my...?"

Was this about to get dirty?

He scoffed internally at his own delusions. This was Bonnie Bennett he was talking to. There was no way it would be remotely dirty. Plus, he had never shared anything close to romantic with her, but then again who knew what she and F.D. had gotten up to. Taking in the way she was blushing, he frowned and prompted, "Since my what, Bonnie?"

"Soup," she eventually grumbled, playing with one of the toothpicks that held her sandwich together. "You made me soup – or actually, Future Damon did."

"He cooked for you?"

Why would he do that? He didn't make it a habit to cook for people. That one time with Elena had been to get in her good graces, not to give her a good meal.

"You didn't notice him using your kitchen?" Bonnie lifted a wry brow.

"I didn't stalk his every movement, no," he answered when he realized something and smirked, "It was the best thing you put in your mouth?"

She pressed her toothpick too hard against her plate and it snapped as she flushed for the second time in a matter of minutes. "I exaggerated."

"Sure you did," he teased, letting his eyes widen slightly for effect.

He wished he could have seen it; her eating his soup. Especially if she had enjoyed it as much as she had just enjoyed that sandwich... he really wished he could have seen that.

"Don't let it go to your head. It was only soup."

"Only the best soup you've ever had," he countered with a cheeky grin. "I rocked your culinary world."

Her lips quirked and she attempted to hide her smile behind her turkey club.

Wow. Two smiles in one day – that had to be some kind of record.

Studying her for a moment, he decided not to beat around the bush. "So, what's with the attitude lately?"

"Excuse me?" She lifted an eyebrow and lowered her sandwich.

"Don't play dumb, Judgy. You know exactly what I'm talking about."

"There's nothing to tell." She gave a small off-hand shrug.

"So you're just being bitchy for no reason?"

Her green eyes flashed and she pointed her last toothpick at him like a stake. "And to think, I almost went ten minutes without hating you."

He lifted his hands defensively. "I'm just being honest; isn't that better than a gentleman?"

"Not really."

"I think you owe it to me to be honest considering this involves me somehow." She opened her mouth to contradict him, but he cut her off, "Don't try to deny it. You and Future Me have a secret which means that, technically, you and I have a secret except _I_ don't know what that secret is."

Bonnie stared at her unfinished meal as she mulled over what he had said, her cheeks colouring _again_. What was up with that? He had never seen anyone blush so much in his life.

Eventually, she lifted her jade eyes to meet his. "Let's just say that something has come to my attention that I'm doing my best to see doesn't come to pass."

What the hell kind of explanation was that? His brow crumpled, caught somewhere between confusion and frustration. "And this requires you to be a bitch to me?"

"Could you stop calling me a bitch?" she demanded, her mouth a thin, hard line. He held his hands up in surrender and she continued, "But yes. I think it will help."

"Well I think it's stupid – and if _I_ think it's stupid, you know it's bad."

She smirked, and as if sensing he wasn't done, rested her chin against her hand and waited for him to finish.

"I know what this is really about," he began, wagging an astute finger her way. "You, my judgy little witch, are in denial. Your goody-two-shoes conscience can't accept the fact that _you like me_. But you have to face the facts, Bonnie. You and I are going to be besties and there's nothing you can do about it. I've seen it with my own eyes, as disturbing a sight as it was."

She scrunched her nose in disapproval. It was pretty cute. "That's not entirely accurate."

"But it's not entirely wrong either, is it?"

When she said nothing, he continued, "The sooner you accept this, Bonnie," he indicated between them for emphasis, "the happier we'll be."

She gave him an odd look then, as if she were laughing at him... internally. Then she sighed and looked up at the lighting fixture hanging above their heads. "I don't know if I could ever accept it... but... I guess, I could _try_ to be nicer," her eyes suddenly zeroed in on him and she added firmly, "if you're not going to be an asshole."

He felt the corner of his lip stretch into a smirk, "I make no real promises as to my behaviour in the future, but I don't see the harm in trying."

Stealing a fry from her plate, he decided to start this tentative friendship by offering an olive branch. Looking her straight in the eye, he steeled himself and spoke earnestly, "I'm sorry... about your Grams. It was never my intention – well, I didn't really care either way what happened to anyone in that town, but she was the only family you had and... I'm sorry that you lost her because of me."

Well, that had been worth it just for the look on Bonnie's face. He'd never seen anyone look so shocked.

Collecting herself slowly, she said, "Thank you. I'm..." she paused briefly before ending, "sorry about your car."

Really? That was the all she was going to give him?

Busying herself with the straw of her milkshake she hesitated then added reluctantly, "And for bringing Katherine up. For Katherine in general really."

"Yeah, she sucks," he concurred, feeling his mood sink. Fuck Katherine. Pushing all thoughts of Katherine and the negativity she brought with her to the side, he concentrated on the future, "You know what isn't going to suck? This trip."

"Doesn't it suck already?" Bonnie asked sardonically.

"That was the first quarter, Bonnie, this is the second. It's a whole new game now. We know where we're going –"

"Because I bought a map," Bonnie couldn't help but point out.

He chose to ignore that useless bit of information. "My car is about to be fixed – I am almost positive – and the next thing you know we'll be in Niagara sipping wine and eating cheese and talking to a woman about a spell."

He garnered his third smile of the day and she didn't even try to hide it this time. Things were looking up already. At this rate he was going to have to stop counting. Maybe he should if they were going to be friends...


	7. Closer

**Disclaim.**

**This is the third installment to the Seeing Double series. I tried working on some other things before starting this, but everything I tried writing sucked so I gave up and started this instead. I'm not quite happy with this chapter, but hopefully I'm just being harsh on myself and it's better than I think it is. lol.**

**Thank you to everyone who took the time to review my last chapter, it means a lot, and hopefully this will satisfy your need for more. This installment is based loosely on the song Closer by Tegan and Sara. I say loosely because that song is about sex and this story is just about Bonnie and Damon getting closer. lol. If you haven't heard it, give it a listen - it's really catchy.**

**This story takes place in a slightly AU version of season 3 after the episode Ghost World. The only real difference is that Bonnie and Damon are friends. Pretty much everything else is the same. I did alter one scene though. Instead of Jeremy saying he still loved Anna to Elena, I had him say it directly to Bonnie. I needed that to happen for the story to work. Now on to the story!**

* * *

**Closer**

(_I won't treat you like you're oh so typical)_

_- _T_egan and Sara_

It started off tentatively enough. A few simple conversations, a couple random texts about generic topics. Their arguments morphed into banter; their barbs, into teasing jokes. Then slowly the texts grew less generic and the conversations lengthy.

Actually, there were times when Damon was a little taken aback by how easy he found it to talk to Bonnie. As different as they seemed on the surface he was surprised to find that, underneath it all, they shared a lot of similar characteristics.

Like their sense of humour...

He once texted her a picture of a broom leaning against a wall with the caption – **made me think of you** – and the next day she texted him back a picture of a hobo on a park bench drinking out of a brown bag. Below the picture she had written, _Almost went over to say hi before I realized it wasn't you._

Now, six months into to their truce, Damon was as likely to be found with Bonnie as he was Alaric. He counted her on his pathetically short list of friends and, though she would never admit it out loud, he suspected the feeling was mutual.

Standing beside the island in Elena's kitchen he checked his phone for the millionth time in what felt like minutes.

Nothing.

He frowned and tuned back into the pointless conversation.

Alaric and Elena were going over the hieroglyphs Damon had discovered on his little adventure with Mason the not-so-friendly-ghost.

Alaric stood with his arms crossed and brow pinched as he examined the photos. He shook his head. "This is going to take quite a bit of research. I couldn't even tell you for certain what language this is."

"I could help. Two heads work better than one," Elena offered.

He tossed her a smile, "Yeah thanks. Do you think Bonnie would lend a hand too? She's kind of a wiz when it comes to research." Damon lifted a curious brow and Alaric elaborated unabashedly, "Have you read her history papers? They put my dissertation to shame."

Elena murmured her agreement.

Damon shot another speedy glance at his cell phone and bit back a growl, slipping it into his back pocket. He had texted Bonnie to ask where she was when he realized she wouldn't be showing up to their team meeting about half an hour ago. Still no response.

"Speaking of," he said turning to the doppelganger, "where is the little witch?"

Elena hesitated, attempting to look at Damon discretely from the corner of her eye, before answering with a shrug, "I don't know how much help Bonnie will be right now. She's going through some stuff."

He felt the muscles in his shoulders knot.

"What stuff?"

She ran her hands threw her hair, shrugging and avoiding eye contact.

"What stuff, Elena?" he pressed, crowding her personal space.

She sighed and relented, "She and Jeremy broke up."

Was that it?

He stepped back and leaned against the island, his muscles relaxing. He couldn't say he hadn't seen it one coming. That particular relationship had been a hot mess for months. Honestly, he was kind of surprised they had managed to keep it together for so long.

Bonnie was probably to thank for that. She had been holding on to that relationship like a lifeline and at first it seemed like it was working, they seemed to be getting past their issues, but lately... Even Damon had noticed the tension mounting between the former lovebirds.

Vaguely, he was aware of Alaric and Elena brainstorming a plan of action.

Slipping his phone into his hand, Damon shot Bonnie a quick text.

**You okay?**

A few minutes passed by with him paying half-a-mind to the conversation when his cell vibrated.

_Who told you?_

**Who do you think? You didn't answer my question.**

_I'm fine._

He called bullshit.

"Damon, are you listening?" Elena asked suddenly.

"Not really," he answered absently, glaring down at the phone in his hand. Shoving it back into his pocket, he nodded to Alaric. "We done here? I have places to be."

"Yeah, we're done. If you consider having no clue what to do now, done."

"You'll figure it out. I have faith in your vast knowledge of useless crap," Damon encouraged over his shoulder on his way towards the front door.

"Damon, you can't just leave," Elena called after him. He turned to see her surprised face watching him from the edge of the kitchen.

"Actually, I can..." he shot back with a little wave before speeding away.

* * *

The door to Bonnie's house swung open to reveal Caroline Forbes glaring at him in confusion.

"What are _you_ doing here?"

He offered her a tight smile in greeting. "I'm here to see Bonnie."

Caroline scrunched her brow even further. "She doesn't want to see you."

From inside he could hear Bonnie ask, "Care, who is it?"

"No one," she called over her shoulder at the same time Damon answered loudly, "Your BFF."

Bonnie inched her way into the foyer. She looked a mess dressed as she was in her pajamas, hair disheveled and dark circles under her red rimmed eyes.

"Damon." She didn't sound surprised to see him. Just resigned and tired.

"He was just leaving," Caroline stated with a dirty look in his direction.

"But I just got here," he countered, revealing the bottle of bourbon he had hidden behind his back and wiggling it for effect. "Plus, I brought a friend."

Bonnie studied him closely as she waged an internal debate. Actually, she had been staring at him pretty hard since she entered the foyer.

"Bonnie isn't interested –"

"Come in, Damon," Bonnie interrupted. He stilled in surprise, holding the bottle awkwardly aloft before him. As much as he had wanted it he didn't really believed he'd get the invite.

Caroline spun to her in shock. "Bonnie?"

The girl in question shrugged, shuffling back towards the living room, not bothering to wait for them to follow. "Who says I can't wash my ice cream down with bourbon?"

Vampire Barbie's face pinched in concern as she turned to give him a look. Coming back to himself, he took his first step inside the Bennett residence, making sure to smirk at Caroline as he passed.

"Don't forget to close the door," he couldn't help saying as he moved towards the living room. He could hear her scoff behind him and his smirk widened.

Looking about his surroundings he had to admit he couldn't imagine Bonnie Bennett living in this house. It was swanky, but it didn't quite fit her. She seemed the type to appreciate something with personal history more than well put together decor. He had imagined mismatched, worn down furniture in warm colours not... this. It looked more like a museum than a home.

Bonnie was sitting on the couch with her feet tucked under her, a tub of ice cream in her hand and a glassy stare on her face as she watched the paused animated faces of what looked to be a stuffed porcupine and unicorn...

"What the hell is this?" Damon asked as he flopped down on the couch beside her.

"Toy Story 3," she answered absently. When he made no sound of recognition, she twisted her head to eye him curiously. "You've never seen Toy Story 3...?"

He made a face that clearly said no and she seemed to snap out of her daze and really see him. Then, shaking her head gravely, she spoke as if it were truly the most pathetic thing imaginable to her, "That's sad."

"Is it? Or is it sad that _you _have?"

An unexpected pain in his leg made him jump and look up to find Caroline glowering at him. How long had she been standing there for?

"What do you want?" he snapped, feeling hassled.

"My spot – you're in it."

"Too bad. Find a new one."

She huffed then whined, "_Bonnie_..."

Bonnie gave her a soft apologetic smile. "Normally I'd push him to the side to make room for you, but... he has the liquor."

"Score one for booze," he said, holding his bottle high like a trophy and sending the irritating blonde a smug smile just to watch her scowl darken. Rolling her eyes, Caroline made a home for herself on the floor between their legs. Damon made sure his knee was poking her in the back, but she stubbornly ignored it.

They un-paused the movie and shared the ice cream (Bonnie and Caroline) and the alcohol (Bonnie and Damon) and Damon found that he wasn't having a horrible time. The tension and sadness that had been hanging around Bonnie like a cloak slowly drifted away. With each tiny sip of bourbon she took her laughter became more relaxed until she was full on cackling.

Caroline kept shooting them disapproving glances over her shoulder which, in Damon's opinion, made the entire experience more worthwhile.

* * *

Ken had just been thrown across the dumpster by Lotso and was giving his spiel about how cool and groovy Sunnyside could be when Caroline's phone chimed. She glanced at it, frowning, and then paused the movie.

"It's Tyler. He wants me to meet him. He says it's urgent."

Bonnie stiffened infinitesimally beside him. "You should go."

She wavered slightly then shook her blonde head. "No, you need me here."

"Care, he said it was urgent. It might have something to do with the sire bond. Just go. I'll be fine. Damon's here." The witch made a sloppy gesture in his direction, her hand bouncing lightly off his shoulder.

Vampire Barbie got to her feet looking torn. "That doesn't reassure me."

Damon rolled his eyes. "I solemnly swear I won't let Bonnie do anything stupid."

"That's not what I'm worried about."

Just what was she implying? That he would take advantage of Bonnie?

He narrowed his eyes into slits as his body tensed. "You can leave now."

Features drawn tight, she vacillated a moment longer before sighing, "Bonnie, I promise I'll come back as soon as I can."

Bonnie nodded, her focus on the tub of half-melted ice cream in her lap. He felt the wind stir as Caroline sped out of the house.

He eyed the despondent girl beside him. "You wanted her to stay."

She shrugged. "It doesn't matter."

He rolled his eyes. The martyr act was only cute to a point. "You know it's okay to be selfish every once in a while."

A tiny smirk peeked at him from the corner of her lips. "You _would_ say that."

She tossed the carton of ice cream onto the coffee table and grabbed the bourbon out of his hands, taking a large swallow.

His eyebrows kissed his hairline, impressed as she wiped the excess moisture from her lips with the back of her hand. "That's going to go straight to your head," he commented.

She shook her head. "Nope. You were wrong. I can totally bourbon my handle. I'm not even a little drunk."

He smirked, eyes squinting at her. "Are you sure about that?"

She nodded. "I don't think I've ever thought this clearly in my life."

She made to take another swig but he snatched the bottle away from her. She gaped at her empty hand a moment, gave a slow blink and then seemed to realize what had transpired. Her brow knitted and she looked at him questioningly.

"I think you've reached your limit."

She snorted in disdain, "I'll tell you when I've reached my limit. I can't even _see_ my limit from here."

"That's because you've moved so far beyond it it's become a dot in the distance."

"Damon... just give me the bottle before I give you an aneurism."

"I would actually pay to see you try that right now."

She narrowed her jade eyes in his direction and he heard a vase shatter somewhere behind him. Bonnie looked shocked as she stared over his shoulder at the inadvertent destruction she had caused.

"Oh no."

"What was that about not being drunk?" he teased.

"I'm not," she insisted despite the evidence proving otherwise.

She shifted in her seat to face him properly, leaning her weight against the headrest and bringing one of her knees up to hook her arm around it. He noticed a smudge of ice cream in the crease of her lips and was strangely tempted to wipe it away.

He could feel the heaviness of her gaze as it raked over him. He cocked a quizzical brow.

"Brainstorming," was her simple response.

He smirked, "Brainstorm all you want, you're not getting this alcohol." He waved the bottle tauntingly and took a short swig. Her eyes narrowed and the glass in a window to his right blew out. Ducking his head, he used his arms to shield himself from the flying shards and exclaimed, "Stop trying to witchy migraine me before you tear the roof off."

"Shit. My dad's going to kill me," she grumbled darkly.

Straightening out, he brushed away the stray shards that had landed on him and, aiming for nonchalance, asked what he'd wanted to know since hearing about the break up. "So... what happened with Boy Wonder?"

Bonnie groaned, resting her head on her knee. "No. We're not talking about that."

"Come on, you can tell your bestie – dish," he cajoled, poking the top of her head with a finger.

Her head shot up and she gave a pointed look at the bourbon. "Make it worth my while and maybe I will."

She was off her game if she thought that would be enough for him to hand over the bottle.

She stared him down waiting for him to make a move and he stared back. He had never noticed the streaks of brown in her eyes before... maybe they were more hazel than green...

Leaning back suddenly, she gave a one shouldered shrug. "Fine. I guess I won't tell you why I broke up with him then."

Whoa, whoa, whoa! _She_ broke up with _him_ after months of struggling to keep them together?

He could feel the curiosity crushing him and he attempted to school his features into a look of indifference.

It would seem Bonnie wasn't off her game after all. One of Damon's many flaws was his constant need to stick his nose into other people's business. It was one of the few things he had in common with Vampire Barbie which was probably why Bonnie was so good at using it against him – she already had years of practice under her belt.

Bonnie made to get off the couch but he was holding the bottle in front of her before she could lift her ass off the cushion. Smiling, she took her prize and enjoyed a victory sip.

When she was done he pressed, "Well?"

He watched the good humour slip from her face as she frowned down at the brown Woodford Reserve label and peeled at it idly. She opened her mouth to speak, took a deep breath, exhaled and then stole a massive swig of the liquid.

It wasn't like Bonnie to not just come out and say something and her hesitation was making him uncomfortable.

"What the hell did he do?"

She took another large gulp and when she was done he impatiently snatched the dark nectar away from her.

She turned to him, her gaze locked on something over his shoulder as she blurted, "He cheated on me with Anna."

"What?" That couldn't be right... "How is that even possible?"

Her focus shifted to him briefly before pressing her face into the back of the couch. If it wasn't for his advanced hearing he wouldn't have been able to make out what she said next.

"When the ghosts were solid Elena caught them together and when I confronted him about it he said... he said he loved Anna. That it would always be Anna."

He winced, knowing first hand exactly what it felt like to hear those words. Frowning, he consumed a rather large portion of the bourbon, appreciating the slow burn as it traveled down his throat. When he finished he poked her with the half filled bottle and confessed in a low voice, "I know how that feels."

"Yeah, you do." She grasped the bottle tightly in her small hands and this time when she attempted to drain it dry he didn't stop her.

* * *

Caroline had yet to return and Damon was beginning to think that she wasn't going to.

He and Bonnie had somehow made it onto the floor, sitting with their backs against the couch. The now empty bottle of bourbon was lying dejected a few feet away from them on a pile of broken glass. Damon had taken the time to brush all the window shards into said pile before Bonnie could cut herself on them.

The witch was thoroughly trashed.

And a thoroughly trashed Bonnie had no sense of self-preservation. Something he had learned the hard way when she had practically _thrown_ herself off the couch and onto the glass strewn floor.

An inebriated Bonnie was also quite chatty. He had never heard someone talk about such random crap in his life. She was still managing to speak in complete, coherent sentences, which was impressive in its own right, but the conversation had a tendency of bouncing from one subject to the next in a way that could be hard to follow.

In much the same fashion she had been doing for the past hour or so, she exclaimed without preamble, "What the hell is wrong with us?"

"Uh..."

She gave him as stern a look as she could manage and poked him roughly in the chest. "I am nobody's second choice."

"And you shouldn't be."

She nodded, a deep frown marring her pretty face. "Screw 'em. Screw 'em all."

"All?" he echoed, moving her finger from where it was still prodding him in the chest.

"Gilberts," she explained like he should already know. "No more! I am nobody's second choice."

He wasn't sure if she was actually referring to both Jeremy and Elena, but it was amusing nonetheless. "You've said that part already," he smirked.

"And I mean it. What are we? Punishment for gluttons? We're worth so much more than this."

"Um..." he trailed off, lifting an eyebrow. Was she using the royal we or... was she referring to both of them? He really couldn't keep up.

"I brought him back to from the dead and it wasn't enough," she continued, her shoulders slumping. "Why Anna? Why was I not good enough?"

She looked to him then as if he had the answer and he sighed tiredly, eyeing the empty bourbon bottle by their feet and thinking, _I should've brought two_.

"I don't know," he answered honestly. "I don't know why people make the choices that they do... Trust me, I wish I did. I've been in your shoes."

"Not really."

His attention snapped back to Bonnie, lips drawing down in a frown. "_How drunk are you?_ Do you have any idea how many times I've had to hear 'it will always be Stefan?'"

She huffed, blowing a stray hair out of her face. "Imagine Stefan's been dead for a year and _then_ someone says that to you."

He winced, his frown deepening as he admitted reluctantly, "Okay... yours is worse."

"That's it!" she exclaimed, slapping the cushion by her head. "I'm going to be happy. I've decided."

"Good luck with that."

She continued on, not hearing him. "That's all I've ever wanted... to be happy. Is that too much?" She got on her knees and brought herself closer to look him dead in the eye.

It was kind of intense, so he moved his gaze over her shoulder and simply said, "Nope."

"And I know I will be. I've seen it with my own eyes."

He hummed a non-committal sound.

Warm air fanned across the skin of his neck as she breathed into his ear, "We could be so good to someone, but it has to be the right someone. We can't settle anymore."

He went very still, feeling goose-bumps brake out in a fine layer across his skin. She leaned into him, burying her head into the crook of his neck and his hand squeezed his thigh to keep itself from moving.

She whispered against his neck and he shivered with each brush of lips, "We love too much, that's our problem. We have to find someone who can love us as much as we love them."

She repositioned her head so he was forced to meet her gaze again. He could smell the alcohol on her breath as she leaned close and spoke with conviction, "One day someone's going to look me in the eye and say, 'You. It could only ever be you. Always. I wouldn't be happy with anyone else.'"

Her eyes were completely focused on him as she spoke, her voice soft and full of promise and Damon felt something warm and hungry unfurl in the centre of his chest with each word she uttered. He wanted that. He wanted...

He swallowed past the sudden dryness of his throat and tried to stop staring at her lips, but they looked soft and they still had a tiny speck of ice cream in the corner.

He felt himself lean forward and the part of his brain that wasn't focused on finding out if Bonnie's lips were as soft as they looked was chastising himself on his absolute lack of self-control.

He traced his mouth softly across hers and felt her sudden intake of breath. His fingers snagged in her hair as he held her head to keep her from pulling away, but she didn't move. She was completely still waiting for him to make a move.

She didn't have to wait long.

He drew his lips lightly against hers once... twice before nipping her bottom lip and tugging it briefly into his mouth. She kissed him firmly then, raking her nails down his chest and all the blood rushed away from his head.

He let his free hand rest on her fluttering pulse point and bit back a sound that was more animal than man. He could feel the tension in his gums as his fangs strained to be released and he eased back but didn't break contact. His lips grazed along hers until they met the corner with the ice cream and his tongue snaked out to lick it away.

Bonnie made a breathy little noise and he was done.

Pushing himself abruptly away before he threw her on the couch and ravished her, he leaned his head onto the seat cushions and took a deep, unnecessary lungful of air.

He peeked at Bonnie from the corner of his eye and frowned. He could hear the rapid pace of her heart and accelerated breathing, but otherwise she looked completely unfazed. Irritation spiked under his skin only to be smoothed over seconds later when her unfocused gaze met his and she smiled softly.

"Yeah, we'll be fine. No more second place crap for us."

He still wasn't sure whether or not she was speaking about both of them, but he suddenly hoped she was.


	8. A Thousand Little Moments

**Disclaimed!**

**So, I was working on AE when inspiration for the next installment in the Seeing Double series struck. I hope you guys don't mind.**

**As always, thank you for all the love and support you guys send my way. I really don't deserve it, but I'll take it anyways! lol.**

**This chapter is kind of a doozy. I hope you'll enjoy reading it 'cause I had a criminal amount of fun writing it. This chapter includes minutely AU versions of episodes 3x10 "The New Deal," and 3x12 "The Ties That Bind." It takes place over the course of a month and a half and by the end of the chapter we're right before the stuff in episode 3x14 "Dangerous Liasons" happens. I didn't watch all of season three so I apologize now if there are any massive inconsistencies or illogical happenings of any kind.**

**Also, I blatantly stole a line of this chapter from a book called Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout. It's a good read, I recommend it. The line is: Her palms itched to have a close encounter of the bitch-slap kind with his face. (lol. I just couldn't resist using it).**

* * *

Damon felt like he was flying.

It had happened – finally.

He had kissed Elena.

It had been... sweet, and maybe just a little on the hungry side with a touch of desperation. It surpassed his expectations, that was for certain, and that might just be because it actually happened – and not just in his head like it usually did.

And the best part it of all: she had kissed him back. Elena effing Gilbert had _kissed him back_.

Satisfaction coursed through him like a drug as he tossed himself, still fully clothed, onto his oversized bed. She would probably try to play it off in the morning, but deny it all she wanted to, he _knew_ with every fiber of his being that she had feelings for him. This was proof.

He thought over the night again, the way she had looked at him when she thanked him for helping out with Jeremy.

_You're very welcome, Miss Gilbert,_ he thought with wicked delight until a sudden voice sounded in the back of his mind,

"_**Gilberts... No more! I am nobody's second choice."**_

His lips tugged down, his good mood ruined. Bonnie could be such a nuisance.

He grumbled softly and focused back on Elena. Closing his eyes, he recalled the feel of her lips against his and the scent of vanilla that always encased her, but for the life of him all he could smell was Maple Walnut and bourbon.

He could taste it on her lips, at the corner of her mouth, on her tongue. No matter how hard he focused her brown eyes kept shifting to green and her ivory skin to caramel and suddenly he wasn't on the Gilbert porch, he was sitting on Bonnie Bennett's living room floor.

This time he didn't pull away. This time he pressed forward until he was hovering over her and her hair was fanned out on the beige rug and he could feel the heat of her skin where the lines of their bodies met –

He growled, rubbing a slow hand over his features and through his hair. Why was she ruining this for him? Why was he thinking about this _now_, when he had just shared a kiss with _the love of his life_?

What happened with Bonnie was stupid and insignificant. It had been... He sighed.

Okay. It had been... hot, and maybe just a little on the dirty side with a touch of awesome. _But who cares?_

Bonnie certainly didn't. She couldn't even remember the damn thing!

That girl could not handle her bourbon, he had come to realize. Lesson officially learned.

She had been so drunk off her ass she could barely remember her own name the next day, let alone what happened after Caroline left.

At first he had been insulted, but that was quickly replaced with relief. Her not remembering the kiss meant he wouldn't have to listen to her go on and on about how wrong it was for him to take advantage of her in her vulnerable blah, blah, blah. And this way he wouldn't have to suffer seeing Caroline's smug face when she said, "I knew I couldn't leave you with her."

He climbed out of bed and started undressing, suddenly not in the mood to reminisce.

"_**We could be so good to someone, but it has to be the right someone. We can't settle anymore."**_

"Oh for fuck sake, get out of my head!" he shouted, tossing his shirt across the room in frustration.

This had been happening a lot recently; her voice popping into his mind, sometimes intentionally, most of the time not. He'd remember something she'd said at the oddest times and feel the need to repeat it out loud to anyone who was listening. He knew her opinion on pretty much everything and the things he didn't know he found himself wondering about.

And usually it was something trivial.

Once he caught himself wondering if she preferred butternut squash or meat in her ravioli. He had been watching Elena cook... She wasn't even making pasta...

There was something seriously wrong with him.

* * *

"I was bound to see my mother sooner or later," he heard Bonnie speak as he approached the front door of the Gilbert residence.

"Sooner," he retorted, entering the house and holding the file aloft before reading off, "Abby Bennett-Wilson, Monroe, North Carolina. Born in Mystic Falls Hospital, graduated from Mystical Falls High, blah, blah, blah, blah..."

He stopped in front of Bonnie and held the folder out for her to look at. Through the veil of shock she managed to shoot him a grateful smile before standing and taking it. He heard Elena move to stand behind him so he addressed them both as he continued, "A little compulsion helps speed up the research process."

He grinned smugly at Elena who avoided his gaze and stared resolutely at Bonnie. He fought not to roll his eyes.

One good thing about Bonnie not remembering the kiss: no awkwardness.

He frowned. Really? He was going to make a conscious effort not to think about that damn kiss ever again – starting now.

He turned back to Bonnie to find her staring down at the picture of Abby Bennett, her expression unreadable. Viridian eyes darted up to him and then Elena, "This is her."

"Yup. Road trip! I call shot gun." He tossed her a conspiratorial smile and was pleased when she offered a smaller, more reserved one of her own in return.

"Yeah, no," Elena countered, taking him aback.

"Want me to hang out in the back with you?" he asked, sending her a flirty smirk.

"You're not coming, Damon," she continued, not even bothering to look in his direction as she piled together all the irrelevant files.

"Why not? I found her," he argued, looking towards Bonnie for support. She just shrugged, her lips quirking slightly in amusement.

_Thanks a lot, Bonnie_, he thought dryly.

Elena finally gave him her full attention. "Okay, Damon, look." She made a vague gesture with the folders she held at his witch, like he wouldn't know who she was referring to if she didn't. "Bonnie hasn't seen her mom in over fifteen years. We don't need your snarky commentary narrating the experience."

"I don't mind," Bonnie spoke, causing Elena to take a sudden step back in surprise. "Not the snark, obviously, but Damon coming."

He smiled and wormed his way closer to Bonnie. "And here I thought you weren't going to speak up for me."

"I almost didn't," she began with a teasing smile then shrugged, ducking her head slightly, "but I don't know. It might ease the tension or lighten the mood or something. It might be nice," she shook her head abruptly and ducked it even further, "– or, well, not nice... it might be what I need."

He froze.

Something indefinable and warm spread slowly through his stomach. Every muscle in his body tensed as he became aware of the itching in his gums as his fangs longed for release; of the veins under his eyes becoming more pronounced; and in the very depths of his chest, the most alarming thing of all, a phantom heartbeat.

Bonnie peeked up at him from under her dark lashes and he found himself crowding her space. She looked startled and maybe a little confused, but she didn't bother to put any distance between them.

Bonnie never backed away. Not since that first time in the parking lot when he pressed her against that car.

Mmm... He wouldn't mind backing her against a car right now. Or a wall...

He remembered the way she smelt the night they kissed.

He took a subtle breath in now and was almost surprised when he couldn't catch the scent of Maple Walnut or bourbon – instead she smelt like sage and lime and... something he wanted to sink his teeth into. He could see her pulse racing under the surface of her skin and licked his lips in response.

He wondered if his game face was showing. He wondered if it would bother her if it was.

He glanced at her face. Bonnie's gaze had drifted to his lips; her own parted slightly in response.

He wondered what she would taste like now.

"What's going on with you two?"

Elena's voice jolted them both out of whatever-the-hell was happening. Irritation flared in Damon's chest and he tried to temper it, not really certain why he was so upset, while Bonnie jumped and glanced over at her best friend, looking startled to see her there.

"Nothing," Bonnie answered with a little too much conviction at the same time Damon snapped, "We kissed."

"What?" both girls exclaimed in shock. Bonnie's eyes were twice their natural size as she regarded him.

_Oh yeah_... Damon remembered, _Bonnie has no idea about the kiss_.

Shit.

He lifted his focus to the kitchen ceiling and brainstormed a way to backpedal. Quickly, he amended, "_Elena_ and I kissed."

"What?" Bonnie repeated, befuddled.

"Damon," Elena scolded.

He nodded, not really meeting either girls' eyes. "Yeah, I know. Now it's weird."

A long moment stretched in silence.

_Okay, well this situation just got awkward_.

Smiling vaguely in first Bonnie's, then Elena's direction, he took his leave.

A few seconds later he got a text from Bonnie:

_Wait, so are you coming or not?_

_P.S. We're talking about this later._

"Oh joy," he sighed.

* * *

After the somewhat disastrous first meeting of Mama Bennett (plus surrogate son), Damon allowed Bonnie to drop Elena off first before driving him to the boarding house. He didn't say anything when she followed him out of the car and into the house.

Getting inside he moved quickly to the bar and poured himself a generous helping of bourbon. Deciding he didn't feel like being interrogated right now, he attempted to direct the conversation before she could.

"Don't beat yourself up about falling for Klaus's dirty little trick. It was a smooth move using your mom. Luckily, I'm always one step ahead of the game."

"I don't want to talk about that," Bonnie replied, draping herself over the back of his couch and watching him intently.

He took a slow sip of liquor before giving her a tight, toothless smile. "Well I don't want to talk about what _you_ want to about."

She cocked a curious brow. "Why not? I thought you'd be dying to gush."

He narrowed his eyes at her. "I don't gush."

"So what's the problem?"

"No problem." When she looked unconvinced he continued, "I don't kiss and tell, Bonnie."

Her brow wrinkled. "Yes you do. You blatantly brought it up this morning, which was a little weird because –"

Something jumped behind his ribcage and he rushed to cut her off before she got too far down that train of thought. "Okay, you've squeezed it out of me. We kissed – it was magical. Satisfied?"

"Are you?"

God, he hated it when she did this. Somehow, he knew, this conversation was going to end up with him having some sort of moment of self-discovery. And then he'd replay the conversation over and over in his head until said discovery lead to him unconsciously becoming a better person. It was so annoying.

Stubbornly, he said, "Extremely," and took a massive gulp of his drink.

"You know what you're doing, right?" she continued.

His breath left him in a loud rush and he rolled his eyes. "No, but I'm sure I'm about to find out."

"You're making yourself the Other Man."

"_What?_" he exclaimed incredulously, placing his glass back on the bar with a little more force than he intended and pouring himself another large helping.

"You keep throwing yourself at her -"

"Whoa there," he held up a silencing hand, "Why are you assuming _I_ did the throwing? Elena could have come on to _me_."

She gave him a long look that said everything it needed to say and continued, "I know her and I know you. And you're actions are sending her a message right now and the message reads – I'll take what I can get."

"Bullshit," he snarled, "Elena knows –"

"Elena knows only what you tell her, Damon. How is she supposed to take you seriously when you don't even respect yourself enough to have standards?"

Heat crawled its slow way up the back of his neck as he stared her down. She met his gaze unflinchingly and even had the gall to lift a prompting eyebrow. He took a deep breath and managed to bite out between clenched teeth, "I don't remember asking you for your judgemental opinions, so why don't you take them and shove them up your ass."

She just rolled her eyes. "I'm just telling you the same thing I would tell Caroline or Elena if they were in your position. You wanted my friendship, well... this is it."

"Funny," he glowered darkly at her, "Being friends with you is starting to feel a lot like _not_ being friends with you. I distinctly recall being preached at repeatedly before I earned your 'friendship.'"

She straightened up and crossed her arms. "I'm not preaching; I'm giving you a hard truth. And the truth is you need to put your foot down and stop giving your goodies away for free."

"My goodies?" he echoed with a sardonic twist of his lips.

"I'm serious, Damon. It needs to stop – the whole chasing her thing. The only way you'll come in first is if you stop acting like your second best."

He bristled and started to object but she barrelled on with a firm look. "I wasn't finished."

_When is she ever?_ he thought nastily, but kept silent, swallowing a bit of bourbon to keep him pacified.

"Don't think for a second that I condone you going after someone in a _committed, happy relationship_, but you can't settle anymore. –"

That indefinable, warm, uncomfortable sensation from before was back in his stomach and spreading to his chest. He went very still, holding his drink close as if to shield himself from what he was experiencing.

"–You need to tell Elena, straight up, exactly what you want from her and if she isn't willing to give it to you then, honestly, I think you should move on. You deserve more than Other Man status. –"

"_**We're worth so much more than this,"**_ Bonnie's voice echoed at the back of head.

He struggled to swallow past the sudden dryness of his throat.

"–And as much as it may surprise you, I _do_ want you to be happy," she finished and then sighed, "I just don't see this ever making you happy."

He lowered his glass slowly to the bar in an effort to keep his hands busy as he spoke with practiced derision, "Careful, Bonnie, I might start to think you actually care."

"We wouldn't want that," she retorted with a tiny smile.

* * *

He had been struck mid-afternoon with the sudden urge to cook for her, not for the sake of cooking but for the sake of getting to watch her enjoy his food; he got a strange kick out of it.

So now he and Bonnie were both seated at her kitchen table. He could smell her scent of sage and lime and the chicken parmesan that she was currently devouring – courtesy of him. That strange, indefinable, warm feeling was in his chest again. It had been creeping up on him a lot recently and he was coming to anticipate it.

"You know," Bonnie began with a playful curl of her lips, "I'm thinking about chaining you up in my kitchen and just having you cook for me all the time."

He felt his eyebrows shoot skyward and he chuckled softly. Tempering his grin, he managed to leer at her appreciatively and say, "Now there's an idea."

Bonnie's cheeks darkened and she buried her face behind her hands. "That didn't sound dirty in my head, I promise." Giving the aforementioned appendage a little shake, she lowered her hands and tossed him an abashed smile. "I feel pretty spoiled. You're a _very_ good cook."

"Keep telling me that and you won't have to chain me up. I'll cook willingly," he flirted, leaning closer. "I'm happy to spoil you."

And that's when he realized... he was happy. Right here, in this moment, he was astonishingly happy.

Happier, in fact, than he could remember being in a long time.

And he was just sitting in Bonnie Bennett's kitchen watching her eat his food.

_Well fuck_... _I'm in love with Bonnie Bennett._

When the hell had that happened?

* * *

He had left Bonnie's like a bat out of hell and immediately contacted Alaric to meet him at The Grille for a drink.

Now, knocking back tumbler after tumbler of anything wet and alcoholic he could get his hands on, he wondered why he thought calling Alaric was a good idea.

The man was droning on about his work day, like Damon gave a fuck. But it did provide excellent background noise for his internal freak out.

No. He wasn't freaking out. He was just... confused.

He had been convinced, up until an hour ago, that he was in love with Elena. Now he _knew_ he was in love with Bonnie and his certainty was such a real, visceral thing that it was almost terrifying.

This was not to say that he had magically stopped caring for Elena, but he certainly didn't love her. He never really had. She never made him feel good enough, or happy, or important. She _did_ make him feel like he had the potential to be all those things.

And with Bonnie he just _was_ all those things. As soon as she let him into her inner circle he became good enough; whenever she looked at him he felt important because he knew he was important to _her_ and whenever he was around her he was just... happy.

He groaned, resting his forehead against the cool wood of the bar.

He was so fucking _in love with her_; how had he not noticed this sooner?

"I take it this wasn't a social call," Alaric commented from beside him and he lifted his head high enough to see his friend looking at him – half curious, half amused.

Damon let out a heavy breath and debated seeking council. Their bro-ship didn't really include heart to hearts, but Damon got the sense he might need to talk this one out. Rubbing his features tiredly, he sat up and spun to face Alaric on his stool. "Let's just say, hypothetically, that there's this girl –"

"Elena?" Alaric interrupted.

His brow crumpled. "What part of hypothetical do you not understand?"

"Bonnie?" Alaric altered, sounding startled.

"What the actual fuck?" Damon exclaimed, feeling a spike of panic lance through him. Was he wearing a sign or something?

As if his response was a confirmation, Alaric smiled and patted Damon on the back. "Well, thank God for that. It took you a while, but I knew you'd catch on eventually."

He narrowed his eyes threateningly and waited for his vampire-hunting friend to elaborate. Good-naturedly, the man in question sighed and picked up his drink before indulging him.

"Damon, you talk more about her than you do about your car. It was always 'Bonnie thinks this' or 'Bonnie says that.' I think I know more about Bonnie Bennett than her own father does, at this point. It was honestly beginning to feel like I was in high school again... and I teach _in_ a high school, so I would know."

Well that was embarrassing.

Damon tossed back his drink and grimaced as the bitter vodka hit his tongue. He'd really have to start paying attention to what he was pointing to on the rack. He hated vodka.

"Who else knows?" he asked, because he suspected Alaric wasn't the only one.

"Jeremy... I suspect Caroline... and Stefan, for sure. He and I have a bit of a wager going about how long it would take you to realize everything."

"Classy," Damon snorted darkly.

"Yeah well, if you pretend you're still unaware for another month, I'll be a hundred dollars richer."

"Only a hundred?"

Alaric shrugged. "Teacher's salary."

A worry wormed its way into his conscious mind and he had to address it. "Do you think Bonnie knows?"

"It doesn't seem like it," Alaric answered directly.

A lengthy pause stretched while Damon ordered himself another drink, then Alaric asked, "Do you know what you're going to do?"

Normally, he'd run in guns blazing; he'd confess his love and then demand her attention until she started to reciprocate. But this was Bonnie and he had an inkling she wouldn't respond well to that tactic and he really didn't want fuck this up.

Something nagged at the back of his mind, an odd sense of déjà vu. Something about fucking up... something he had said... or heard... in the library – the boarding house library and... He was looking at himself and hearing,

"_**More accurately, I don't want **_**you**_** fucking with my future. You don't know how good you're going to have it."**_

He went very still, a cold sensation trickling its way down his spine as things started to fall into place; started making sense. Memories from the past nine months swirled in his head, fighting for dominance. Future Damon outing his sexual fantasy:

"_**Which, by the way, the fantasy doesn't hold a candle to the real thing."**_

_... __**No wonder F.D. kept looking at her like he knew what she looked like naked... because he did.**_

Bonnie staring down in shock at a small square of blue cloth:

"_**Just a piece of fabric."**_

"_**Then why are you staring at it like it's the Holy Grail?" he probed relentlessly.**_

"_**Maybe because I expected something flashier from you," she answered...**_

"_**It is a little lackluster for me," he admitted.**_

"_**Worth more than gold," F.D. chimed.**_

_**Bonnie flushed suddenly and his eyes narrowed, flicking back and forth between her and his older reflection. They knew something that he didn't...**_

Bonnie smiling behind a turkey club in a diner in Philadelphia, her hair wet and matted to her neck:

"_**Let's just say that something has come to my attention that I'm doing my best to see doesn't come to pass."**_

"_**...You and I are going to be besties and there's nothing you can do about it..."**_

_**She scrunched her nose in disapproval. It was pretty cute. "That's not entirely accurate."**_

"_**It's not entirely wrong either" ... "The sooner you accept this, Bonnie," he indicated between them for emphasis, "the happier we'll be."**_

_**She gave him an odd look then, as if she were laughing at him...**_

"Holy shit."

"What?" Alaric questioned, but Damon barely heard him. He was too busy digesting the truth of it all. He was having difficulty focusing his thoughts, discerning how he felt about this revelation, but the one thing he was certain of: Bonnie had a lot of explaining to do.

* * *

Bonnie peeked over the top of her menu at Jamie and bit her lip. He had come down to Mystic Falls for a visit. It was sweet. It was...

Bonnie grimaced.

It was a little weird, to be honest.

Not that she had anything against Jaime – he was great. She actually wasn't sure how she felt about him... or even how he felt about her. Sometimes it seemed like he was interested in her and she didn't know whether she felt flattered or creeped out.

He was handsome, he had these gorgeous eyes, and he was surprisingly easy to talk to, but Bonnie wasn't sure how she was supposed to view him. What was the etiquette? Was he supposed to be like her brother or was he just a guy who happened to be raised by her mother in place of her?

Would it be weird if she started dating him? Did she want to start dating him?

_What's an existential crisis? Does this qualify?_ she wondered to herself.

Jaime noticed her eyeing him and gave her a tiny grin. She smiled back quickly and buried her head behind the menu.

Once they had ordered, they chatted lightly about nothing in particular. They seemed to skate around the topic of Abby which Bonnie was grateful for. As curious as she was to learn more about her mother, she wanted to learn it from the woman herself, not her surrogate son.

Their drinks arrived and Jaime excused himself to use the bathroom.

Bonnie used his absence to rummage through her purse for her phone. She wanted Caroline's opinion on the Jaime situation. Pushing aside an assortment of useless junk she wasn't entirely sure why she carried around, she found her phone at the bottom of the bag.

**17**_** Missed Calls**_, **8** _**Unread Texts**_, her tiny screen glared at her. She frowned and checked her call history first. All seventeen were from Damon.

She released a heavy breath, erasing her history and then checked her messages. All from Damon as well. What the hell did he want?

She scrolled through them:

**We need to talk.** – _11:13am_

**Answer your phone.** – _11:36am_

**You can't still be asleep. Are you ignoring me?** – _11:47am_

**Answer the DAMN PHONE Bonnie. – **_11:55am_

**I'm coming over.** – _12:02pm_

**Where. The. Hell. Are. You?** – _12:19pm_

**Not at Elena's, not at Caroline's and still not** **answering your phone. **– _12:40pm_

**When I find you Bonnie...** – _12:43pm_

_What is this guy's problem?_ Bonnie wondered as she heard Jaime slide back into the booth across from her. She quickly tucked her phone into her purse and shot a soft smile towards... a furious looking Damon Salvatore.

An angry Damon was nothing new, but she hadn't seen him this fuming in a long time. In fact, now that she was thinking about it, he had been surprisingly good tempered for the past couple of months.

"What happened to you?" she asked cautiously, reaching over to pull her Ice Tea closer to her.

His blue eyes seared along her skin accusingly and she tried not to fidget. It always amazed her that, despite having eyes the colour of winter, Damon's gaze was never cold – only varying degrees of burning.

"You did," he retorted with a downward twist of his lips. "And you knew you would."

Her brow knitted in confusion. "What?"

"Why were you ignoring me?"

She huffed, exasperated. "I wasn't ignoring you. My phone was on vibrate at the bottom of my purse. Why would I be ignoring you?"

"I don't know, you tell me." His stare darkened and narrowed like he was x-raying her for secrets.

Why did it suddenly feel like she was in the middle of a minefield? Like if she didn't choose her next words carefully she'd be blown to pieces.

"Did you have a fight with Elena or something?" she asked, searching for an explanation for the attitude she was receiving. Damon liked to take his problems out on other people, so he might just be misdirecting his anger.

"This has nothing to do with Elena," he paused, studying her with an intensity that was unsettling. It was like he was waiting for her to own up to a crime, and when the seconds ticked by and she still hadn't said anything, he scowled, "I'm finally in on the big secret."

Okay, he had officially lost her.

"What secret?"

"Don't play dumb," he snapped. "You're not blonde enough for it."

Impatience bubbled in her chest as she wrapped her hands around the dewy glass of her Ice Tea. She contemplated throwing it at him and setting him on fire, but there were too many witnesses for that. Instead, she bit out, "I swear to God, Damon, if you don't start making sense soon your brain is going to start bleeding out of your ears."

She went motionless as she was struck with an alarming sense of déjà vu followed by a distressing realization.

No... He couldn't mean...

"The one you and your little boyfriend were keeping." He folded his arms on the table and leaned forward so he could look her straight in the eye when he finished, "Or should I say husband?"

Her stomach dropped and she groaned, burying her head in her hands. "Could we not do this right now?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. Is now not a good time for you?" Sarcasm dripped like venom from his every word. "You only had the past _nine months_ to mention it, so I can see how this might seem a little sudden."

"What the hell was I supposed to say?" she exclaimed, pushing her drink roughly away from her, the brown liquid splashing over the rim and onto the table. "'Hey Damon, I know we don't really get along and you're in love my best friend, but apparently we get married in the future. Just thought you should know.'"

"You didn't even _try _telling me," he hissed.

"We weren't friends. We were barely even allies on a good day."

"What about last week, huh? Or the week before that? Or the _month_ before that? We've been friends for a while now so don't give me that bullshit. You just didn't want to say anything."

She frowned and gave a one-shouldered shrug, "You're right, I didn't. But if you had been the one to find out, I guarantee, you wouldn't have said a damn thing either."

The anger in his baby blues dimmed, his attention shifting briefly to the desert menu lying on the table by his elbow, and when he looked up again, his face was conspicuously neutral.

Was he hiding something from her?

Her gaze narrowed, but she refrained from questioning him. She didn't have time for this.

"Look, Damon, I promise I'll swing by the boarding house later and we can talk about this all night if you want, but _now_ really is a bad time."

"You don't look very busy to me," he accused, frowning deeply.

"I'm here with someone."

Damon went abnormally still for a long moment. Then, slowly, he tilted his head to the side, squinting at her from the corner of his eye and asked incredulously, "Are you on a date?"

"It's not –"

"Are you _cheating on me_?" He seemed caught somewhere between amusement and irritation.

Disbelief coursed through her veins and she scoffed, "I'd have to be dating you in order to cheat on you."

"We're practically engaged," he exclaimed, sounding like he actually believed it.

"We're nowhere near engaged."

He leaned forward and spoke slowly, "At the end of the day you know who you're ending up with, so doesn't that make this whole..." he made a vague gesture to indicate The Grille, "dating thing a little redundant?"

She suddenly wished she was on a date. She didn't like how presumptuous he was being. Leveling a critical look his way, she shrugged and spoke curtly, "Nothing's set in stone."

What modest amount of humour he had seeped from him, leaving dissatisfaction in its wake. "_Who is he?_"

"Uh, Bonnie..."

Seriously?

She slid her attention to Jaime, who was standing awkwardly by the side of the table watching them.

He had to have the worst timing ever.

"Oh, hey Jaime," she started slowly, wondering how to go about this. She glanced at Damon and noticed him eyeing Jaime in confusion and distaste. "Damon, you remember –"

Recollection flashed in Damon's blue orbs – from the one time they met and the few occasions she had mentioned him – and he tossed her an offended glare. "Him? _Really_? Isn't he the kid your mom replaced you with?"

Heat flooded her cheeks and she shot him the dirtiest look she could manage.

He continued relentlessly, "That's a little incestuous of you. He's practically your brother."

She hated that she kind of agreed. Frowning, she grumbled darkly, "It's not like that. He was just visiting."

"What's it to you anyways?" Jaime questioned, his features drawn tight and his whole body tense.

"I'm her future her husband," he answered, flashing an empty smile.

Jaime's eyes bugged and he looked to Bonnie for confirmation.

She opened her mouth only to close it seconds later, not really sure what to say to that. It wasn't like Damon was lying, per say.

"You're engaged?" Jaime asked when she made no response. His voice sounded oddly hollow amongst the noise of the busy restaurant.

"No. I'm not."

"Technically –" Damon attempted to correct, but she cut him off with a sharp glare.

"_Technically_, I'm not."

"Alright then," he countered stubbornly, "theoretically, you are."

Was she? She didn't even know anymore and, to be honest, she didn't want to think about it.

A groan rumbled its way up her throat and she scavenged through her purse for her wallet. Upon finding it she tossed a crumpled twenty onto the table and gathered her things.

"Jaime, I'm really sorry, but we're going to have to reschedule. This clearly isn't going away," she threw a pointed stare at Damon who looked all too satisfied in her opinion, "so I should probably just deal with it."

Jaime nodded, his confusion and disappoint evident on his face.

Damon shot up from his pilfered seat and followed after her as she made her way towards the exit. "Are we headed home, honey? Where _is_ home, by the way? Your place or mine?"

* * *

They ended up at the boarding house.

As soon as they entered, Damon threw himself onto the couch, folding his arms behind his head and stretching out to get comfortable. Bonnie stood at the end by his feet and waited.

And waited...

The silence dragged. Damon stared up at her and she glared back at him.

"Well?" she eventually snapped, her patience gone.

"Well?" he echoed with the hint of a smile.

"I ditched Jaime to talk to you, so start talking."

"Alright." He sat up abruptly. "Let's go over the facts, shall we?"

She rolled her eyes, but refrained from speaking. She should've known he would drag this out.

"In a timeline, much like this one, we fell in love. In fact, we were so in love that I proposed to you and you _actually said yes_. Obstinate, self-righteous, do-gooder Bonnie Bennett fell madly in love with selfish, wickedly handsome, evil doer Damon Salvatore. Does that not thrill you the way it thrills me?"

"Is there a point to this?"

"Just basking in the beauty of it all," he responded with a disarming smile.

Bonnie felt her heart stutter and she frowned.

Yeah, no, this wasn't happening. She was not going to find him cute or charming or endearing in any way. The last thing Damon needed was fuel for his fire, especially after the stunt he had just pulled.

"If you're going to be an ass about this, I'm leaving." She turned on her heel to do just that, but Damon was blocking her pathway and she stumbled into his chest.

"I'm only teasing, Bonnie." His eyes shone with mirth and she pushed herself away, crossing her arms and glaring at him.

"Do you actually have something you'd like to say to me? Or am I wasting my time here?"

He rolled his eyes toward the ceiling and released a large breath. "Lighten up, would you."

"I left Jaime –"

"Yeah, yeah, poor Jaime. I'll write him a formal apology if you'll just let it _go_." He stretched the last word out, widening his eyes for emphasis.

Her palms itched to have a close encounter of the bitch-slap kind with his face. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before saying, "You have ten seconds to say something important."

When the moment drew out and nothing was said she snapped her gaze up to meet his. He was staring intently at her lips.

Heat flushed up her neck and into her cheeks and she strived to maintain her composure. "Ten."

He met her stare head on. "What are we doing?"

"About?"

"Us."

Her brow crumpled. "What's there to do?"

His eyes flicked back down to her lips and he licked his own reflexively. "Oh you know, dating... marriage..."

Was he being serious?

She studied him closely, searching for any sign of mockery and finding none.

"What happened to all that anger from before?" she asked, her confusion eating away at her. At The Grille he had seemed livid, but now it was like his mood had done a complete one-eighty. "Shouldn't you be railing against fate and fighting this tooth and nail? Why are you going along with this?"

"I was upset that you didn't tell me, not about the situation."

"I'm not Elena," she stressed.

"Maybe it's not Elena that I want," he admitted, taking a step forward and erasing the distance between them.

Her head spun.

What was he saying? That he didn't love Elena? That he wanted _her_?

"When the hell did that happen?" she asked with perhaps a bit more attitude than she intended.

She was super aware of how close he was, she could practically _feel_ the soft cotton of his shirt through her own, and she struggled to think through the sudden sensory overload. For the first time in a long time Bonnie found herself backing away.

"You know, I asked myself that very thing," he smirked, moving closer still, "and I couldn't tell you for sure but I suspect it was probably the night you kissed me."

"What?" She halted in her progression, bemused. She had never kissed him.

He continued to advance with a predator's grace, forcing her into motion again. "I doubt you'd remember; you were pretty drunk when it happened."

Drunk?

She jolted as the backs of her legs came into contact with the end of the couch.

_Get a grip on yourself_, Bonnie mentally scolded and straightened up, leveling Damon with a hard look. "The night I broke up with Jeremy and you showed up with bourbon?"

"That would be the one."

She couldn't remember anything about that night. Frustration swirled with anger under her skin and she curled her fists. "I kissed you?"

"Well," he hedged, coming to stop before her, "technically, I kissed you." When she opened her mouth to speak he raised a hand to stop her and finished, "But I was a perfect gentleman and ended it before it even really started."

That was two months ago.

"Why didn't you tell me about this?"

"Why didn't you tell me about the marriage?" he countered.

Okay... so maybe she didn't have a right to point fingers at the moment.

She pursed her lips together hard before speaking, "So what? You just magically stopped having feelings for Elena and started having them for me?"

"No. I still love Elena. I'm just not _in_ love with her," he answered with such sincerity it gave her pause and sent tiny ripples of shock through her veins, effectively displacing some of her anger.

She eyed him critically. He was, of course, standing much too close, but he was maintaining enough distance that she didn't feel cornered. It felt intimate yet strangely respectful.

Her stomach flipped and fizzed with unexpected excitement and she clenched her jaw. No. This couldn't be real – it was too sudden. Tilting her chin defiantly, she pressed, "And how can you be so sure of that?"

"Because I'm in love with you," he spoke simply, his eyes boring into hers and making her pulse race.

Mentally, Bonnie cursed her body's reactions. There was no way she was going to disregard the convenience of his new found feelings for her. She wouldn't be anyone's second choice; not again. So she called him out on it. "That's awfully convenient."

He rolled his eyes, the corner of his lips tugging up slightly in amusement. "How do you think I figured out your little secret, Bonnie? _You_ certainly didn't tell anyone and Future Damon didn't exactly like me enough to dish."

She didn't like how much sense he was making; she didn't like what it was doing to her repertory system. She took a series of shallow breaths and let her attention drift to somewhere over his shoulder.

The warmth of his palm against her cheek made her jump and the air hitched in her lungs. He ducked his head just enough to force her to meet his gaze.

"Maybe I was too stubborn to notice, but it's been you for a while now and it will continue to be you for the rest of my life."

Again, it was the way he spoke – plainly, without his usual embellishments, like he were stating a universal truth – that had the most affect on her.

Keeping their eyes locked, he brought himself closer until they were sharing the same breath. She could feel the definition of his chest under the palms of her hands. His lips hovered just above hers as he continued to whisper truths, "We would make each other happy. We would be good together... and I think you know that."

He swiped his thumb thoughtfully across her bottom lip and Bonnie was suddenly grateful for the armrest she was pressed against. Her legs felt like jelly, there was no way she'd be able to stand on her own.

"We could both have everything we've always wanted," he spoke, his nose brushing hers. "All you have to do is tell me you want me too... and I'm yours."

She'd be lying if she said she wasn't tempted. She'd never been so tempted by anything in her life. But even with all the certainties of their future together, Bonnie felt scared. Doubts and fears echoed in the corners of her mind, and though she suspected most of them were irrational, she couldn't shake them.

To give herself completely to someone was terrifying. Having Damon be that someone made it a thousand times scarier.

She had worked so hard _not_ to develop feelings for him the past couple months. The more time she spent with him, the more she enjoyed his presence; the better she got to know him, the more she wanted to be around him. It was a slippery slope. His humour and intelligence were winning, and his egotism grew on her. She could imagine how easy it would be to fall for him and that scared her most of all.

But all she'd ever wanted was to have someone look at her the way Damon was looking at her now, like she really was the only one for him.

The fact that it was Damon secretly made it that much better.

She bit her lip, wavering between reservation and risk until eventually her fear spoke for her, "I can't."

He brought his lips down to hers. She closed her eyes and went very still, waiting, but he just sighed against her mouth, "Normally, this would be the part where I'd kiss you senseless regardless of what you just said, but..." He pulled away, a small smile skirting his features, and finished, "someone told me I need to have standards, so..."

He pouted playfully and moved away, teasing, "No goodies for you, I'm afraid. Not until you make an honest man of me."

He strolled a few steps away before spinning back and speaking casually, "Well, you know what I want and, once you're done psychoanalyzing yourself and realize that you want the same things, you know where to find me... so I guess the next move is yours. Don't take too long."

Then he sent her the filthiest smile she had ever seen and literally _swaggered_ out of the room and up the stairs.

Wow.

_He's enjoying himself a little too much_, Bonnie thought darkly as she walked around the side of the couch on wobbly legs. She sat, sinking into the cushion on a sigh. She'd wait 'til she had her motor skills back under control and then make her way to her car.

She had to admit, she was expecting him to ravish her despite her saying she wasn't ready. The fact that he hadn't – the whole standards thing – was incredibly sexy, and though she was still apprehensive about the future, she couldn't ignore the seed of excitement that had taken root in the centre of her chest.


	9. A Subtle Seduction

**Here is the final installment of the Seeing Double series. I can't even count how many times I edited/tweaked/re-wrote this chapter. I _can't even COUNT, GUYS!_ But finally I have something I don't hate with a fiery passion. That being said... I'm not entirely happy with it either. I'll let you guys be the judge though.**

**I really wanted this chapter to be perfect for y'all 'cause it's the last in this storyline and I know how much y'all like this one. I really hope this proves to be a worthy ending. And if it's not... I'll totally delete it and we can all pretend this never happened. lol.**

**Only thing you need to know is that I tweaked the show's mythology about witches not retaining their powers when they become vampires because I didn't like it and because it suits my story better this way.**

**Much love, always! You guys are amazing.**

**Oh! And HAPPY BAMON WEEK! WOOOT!**

* * *

**The Subtle Seduction of Bonnie Bennett**

* * *

Bonnie startled awake, the muscles in her neck stiffening in protest as she lifted her head from where it rested on her copy of _Much Ado About Nothing_. She groaned, rubbing the crick in her neck as she glanced at the kitchen clock.

_11:38 pm_.

Well so much for getting all her homework done tonight.

At least she got through the worst of it, having finished prepping for her Spanish quiz and all the assigned algebra questions. Now she only had an English paper to work on and she had all of Sunday to do that.

Leaning back in her chair, she pressed the palms of her hands against her eyelids and yawned.

Sudden knocking at her back door made her start. Twisting, she peered cautiously at the sliding doors that lead to the backyard, not that she could see who it was with the curtains drawn.

Who in their right mind knocks on someone's back door at midnight?

Gathering energy until she could feel it jumping across her fingertips, she left her seat and moved to the door.

Pulling the curtains aside just enough to peek through them she spotted Damon Salvatore lifting his hand to knock again.

She should have known.

Noticing her out of the corner of his eye, he dropped his arm and cocked an eyebrow. "Are you going to let me in or what?"

Huffing, she pushed the curtains roughly aside to open the door. "What are you doing here?"

His brow furrowed. "Didn't you get my text?"

She glanced at her phone laying on the kitchen table beside her unfinished homework and shrugged, "No, I was asleep."

"At," he pushed his tuxedo sleeve up to look at his watch, "eleven-forty on a Saturday night?"

"That's reasonable," she bristled.

"Yeah," he scoffed, "if you have a full-time job and two kids maybe, but not when you're seventeen."

"I do have a full-time job. It's called _school_."

He rolled his eyes, a teasing smirk pulling at his lips as he stepped inside her kitchen and came to stand in front of her.

Unexpected heat flooded her system and she quickly manoeuvred around him to shut the door.

"So..." she hedged, "why are you here?"

He turned to her with a casual rise and fall of his shoulders. "I wanted to check in on you."

"And you couldn't have just called?"

"I could have, but chances are you would have just slept through that, Grandma."

She rolled her eyes but couldn't fight the tiny quirk of her mouth.

A lull stretched and Bonnie fought not to feel self-conscious. She hadn't really spoken to Damon since he admitted his feelings for her at the boarding house a couple days ago. She'd be lying if she said she hadn't been avoiding him and he, surprisingly, had yet to call her on it. It seemed he was being honest when he said he'd wait for her to come to him.

So, other than the odd text or group meeting, and that one phone call where he asked her to the Original's Ball as his plus one when he found out she hadn't been invited, they hadn't spoken.

Now he was standing in her kitchen looking like her personal version of a sexy, disheveled James Bond; his bowtie hanging undone around his neck, his shirt partially unbuttoned, his hair tousled.

Damn, could that boy wear a suit...

As if sensing her train of thought, he sent her a disarming smile. Her gaze dropped to his polished dress shoes before she could find her voice.

"Was that the only reason you came here?"

"No."

Her breath hitched slightly at his simple response, but when she lifted her gaze back to him her skin prickled with apprehension.

He continued, his expression serious, "There have been some... developments."

"What kind of developments?" she asked, dreading the answer.

He released a large breath and, without warning, turned and walked into her living room leaving Bonnie to follow after him. She did, slowly, and watched as he threw himself on her couch, patting the cushion beside him. "Might as well make yourself comfortable."

Frowning, she crossed her arms and sat on the lay-Z-boy.

"So?" she pressed.

"So..." He leaned back, placing his arm behind his head as a pillow before he finished, "Elena decided to make a deal with Esther."

"Esther?" Bonnie struggled to put a face to the name.

"Mama Original," he clarified.

"_What?" _She watched Damon closely to make sure he wasn't teasing her, but he looked completely serious. Her anxiety grew as she asked, "What kind of deal?"

He sat up suddenly, using the arm rest of the couch to lean forward. "This is the best part. Apparently Mommy dearest wants to kill all of her children."

"_What?_" She felt like she had just stepped into the twilight zone.

Damon's tone dripped with derision, "Terribly convenient, wouldn't you say?"

She scrunched her brow. "And she needs Elena to do this?"

"Of course not," he snorted bitterly. "She needs you and Abby, but instead of asking you she decided to go through Elena. She didn't even have the decency to invite you to the fucking ball and now she wants you to do something for her. Personally, I'd tell her to go fuck herself."

Bonnie stifled a laugh behind her fist and shook her head, focusing on the main issue. "Why does she need both me and my mother?"

He made a vague gesture with the arm he wasn't resting his weight on. "Something about needing two witches with the same lineage."

"And do we trust her?"

"I don't," he answered plainly. "This wouldn't be the first time we heard this song and dance from a Mikealson."

"Yeah," she agreed with a nod. She wouldn't be forgetting about Elijah's betrayal anytime soon. "And what's Stefan's opinion?"

"Stefan is in support of Elena of course, though I suspect he feels exactly like I do, he just doesn't want to say anything." His brow knitted suddenly, his voice going up several octaves, "We should let Elena make her own decisions, even if it's the worst decision imaginable and affects the lives of millions."

She tilted her head to study him. "Was that supposed to be Stefan? Because he sounds nothing like that."

"I was exercising my creative licence," he countered with a shrug.

"And that was a terrible thing to say about Elena," she continued as if he hadn't spoken.

"It was an _honest_ thing to say about Elena."

When she opened her mouth to protest he raised a hand to keep her silent. "Look, I'd go to bat for the girl but she's crap at making big decisions."

Bonnie lowered her focus to the beige rug, not knowing what to say. He wasn't wrong. Elena's choices lately had been pretty terrible, but Bonnie truly believed that was because Elena trusted too easily. The girl was always willing to give people the benefit of the doubt, but those people seemed to be taking advantage of that and screwing her over more often than not lately.

"You never know," she started stubbornly, "this might actually work out." She lifted her gaze in time to see him shoot her a sceptical look. "It _might_; and it would be nice if we could take them all out at once."

"Yeah well, one thing's for sure, _someone's_ going to wind up dead at the end of all this. Let's just hope it's one of them and not one of us."

Morbid, but true. Taking out the Original family would not be cut and dry – and with their track record the odds were definitely not in their favour.

Not wanting to dwell on her possible demise she strived to lighten the mood. Hesitating for a moment, she stood slowly and made her way over to the couch, hyper aware of Damon's focus the entire time. He watched her intently as she curled up against the arm rest opposite him, his only comment a pointedly lifted eyebrow.

She shrugged in response and diverted his attention, "So, other than that... how was the ball?"

"Boring." His eyes narrowed, mouth curving sinfully. "It would've been fun if you were there."

She rolled her eyes and bit her lip to keep from smiling. He was such a flirt.

"I had a prior engagement."

"Yeah?" He tossed an arm over the back of the couch as he turned to face her fully. "Just what exactly _have_ you been up to all night?"

"Spanish homework and then math homework and then I fell asleep doing English."

"Riveting. Tell me more," he teased before frowning, "Seriously? Is that all you did?"

"No... I did the laundry too."

His eyes widened dramatically. "Wow... Who do you think they'll get to play you in the movie?"

"Shut up," she laughed despite herself, stretching her leg out to nudge him. "I happen to enjoy days like this."

"You would." He rested his hand lightly on her calf when she failed to pull her leg back. Goosebumps broke out across her flesh where his skin met hers. She was certain he felt it, but he refrained from commenting. Instead, he lowered his lashes and asked, "Should I be offended that you'd rather spend the evening doing homework and washing laundry than with your future husband?"

"That just shows I have my priorities straight."

"Ouch," he winced with a smirk, and it was only when that smirk widened into a smile she realized she had failed to make her usual discouraging remark about the whole future husband thing.

_Score one for you, Damon,_ she tipped her hat silently.

"So, what's English?" he asked suddenly.

She felt her forehead crumple in confusion. "What?"

"Your homework; you said you didn't finish it," he clarified and Bonnie was momentarily shocked that he remembered.

"Oh, um... I have to write an outline for an essay on _Much Ado About Nothing_."

"Ah," he nodded slowly. "That's a good one. It's probably my favourite of his comedies."

"Really?"

"Sure. What's not to like. Boy offends girl; girl holds grudge," he sent a sly glance her way as he continued, his hand tracing absent patterns on her calf. "Boy and girl fight like old married couple while ignoring massive amounts of UST. Outside party shows them how compatible they could actually be. Boy and girl fall madly in love..." He trailed off, his focus falling to her calf as his fingers traced their way higher.

She bit back a sudden intake of air, her hand finding the edge of the couch cushions and squeezing so she wouldn't squirm. "Are you still talking about the play?"

"Of course," he responded with an innocent lift of his lashes. "Why? What were you thinking of?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Don't play coy; you know exactly what I'm talking about."

"Can't say that I do," he continued, his tone casual. His hand fell away from her calf and Bonnie quickly tucked her leg under her as she watched him stand and walk to the tall, dark wood shelving unit at the side of the room.

"Now you have a decision to make, and think carefully because this is vitally important," he spoke ominously, examining the contents of the shelf briefly before turning to face her and holding out his selections. "Batman Begins or The Dark Knight?"

* * *

A quarter of the way through the movie Damon threw a pillow on her lap and promptly used it to rest his head.

"Uh..." she glared at side of his head. "Did I say you could use me as a pillow?"

"You didn't," he peeked at her from the corner of his eye, "but I know that 'bleeding heart' Bonnie Bennett isn't going to ask me to lift my weary head now that it's resting so comfortably," he answered, aiming for coy for the second time that evening.

She rolled her eyes and returned her attention to the movie, not bothering to move him.

And if her fingers twined their absent way through his hair at some point... well, that was okay too.

* * *

Bonnie glanced covertly at her mother in the passenger seat of her tiny Prius. It was almost surreal, them working together like this for the second time in so many weeks after spending the last fifteen years apart.

Abby shifted, the sound of her jeans rubbing against the fabric of the seat loud in the overbearing silence of the car.

Bonnie focused on the pockmarked road in front of her, ignoring the urge to fill the quiet with twenty questions. _Why didn't you stay in contact? Did you stop loving Dad? Is that why you remarried? Why didn't you just take me with you?_

The ruined, crumbling roof of the witches' house poked over the trees in the horizon and Bonnie released a long breath. As much as she wanted to grill her mom for answers, a part of her wanted to avoid the messy conversation for as long as possible - afraid that if she played the wounded daughter card, Abby might decide the relationship wasn't worth salvaging and bail again.

Turning carefully into the grassy clearing, Bonnie parked the car a yard or so away from the house. "We're here."

"This is it?" Abby asked, eyeing the dilapidated building with barely suppressed apprehension.

Bonnie nodded, making to get out of the car when her cell phone vibrated against her thigh. Pulling it out of her pocket, she saw Damon's name glowing on her screen. Sliding the green button to the right, she squeezed her eyes shut and brought the phone to her ear. "Now really isn't –"

"Where are you?" he cut her off briskly.

Her eyes popped open at his tone. "The witches' house; why?"

"Please tell me you haven't done the spell yet."

"Not exactly. I mean, she's already channeling us –"

"Shit, shit, shit!"

"Damon, what the hell is going on?" she snapped; panic lacing her veins at his strange behaviour.

"Just drive home as fast as you can," he instructed, ignoring her, "and under no circumstances invite Stefan in."

"What?"

He released an aggravated hiss, "Bonnie, for fuck sake, get in your car and start driving."

She glanced over to her right to make sure her mother was still in the car. Abby was still seated, watching her intently.

Bonnie lowered the phone slightly. "There've been a slight change of plans," she offered as explanation before shoving her key into the ignition and peeling back onto the road.

Lifting her phone back to her ear, she demanded, "Now start talking."

"Elijah has Elena," he explained shortly as her heart sunk into her stomach, "he's threatening to kill her unless Stefan or I stop Esther."

"And how are you supposed to do that? You can't take her out. She's too strong, especially now that she's channeling the entire Bennett line."

"I know, which is why you need to get your ass home, _now_. If I know Stefan, and I do, then he's going to play the bad guy for both of us."

"What do you mean?" she asked, her stomach already twisting in apprehension.

"I mean, even if we can't take Esther out Stefan's not going to let anything happen to Elena and I'm not going to let anything happen to you..."

Which only left Abby unaccounted for.

"No," she said, shaking her head even though he couldn't see her.

"He knows you'd never forgive me if I was the one to do it. This way, if he takes Abby out, it keeps Elena and you safe while saving me from looking like the creep for once."

"What's going on, Bonnie?" Abby asked, her face a portrait of concern.

Bonnie shook her head in frustration and spoke to Damon, "It's pointless, does he know that? Even if he does kill her it won't stop the spell."

"He's aware of that, which is why he's not planning on killing her."

Her grip tightened painfully on the steering wheel as she gritted her teeth. "Please don't be suggesting what I think you're suggesting."

"The only way to cut Esther off is if one of you stops being a witch," he said, confirming her suspicions.

"There's no guarantee that would even work. Some witches retain their powers even after transitioning!" she exclaimed.

"Trust me, that's a risk he's willing to take." There was a long pause as he released a deep breath then he spoke carefully, "I have to admit, it does feel like our only choice."

"You didn't just say that to me," she spoke harshly, "There is _always _a choice."

"Like what?" he retorted sharply.

She hesitated a moment, swallowing past the sudden dryness of her throat and racking her brain for a solution. Only one thing came to mind and everything inside of her screamed in protest. "Like me."

Quiet stretched as he contemplated what she was saying. "Are you serious?"

"I think it might be our best option."

"Would you..." he broke off abruptly, searching for the right words, "If – if it came down to that... would you transition?"

The silence that followed as she bit her lip trying to decide how to let him down easy and still get him to go along with her plan was apparently answer enough. He snapped suddenly, "You're fucking crazy if you think I'll let you play the sacrificial lamb. Put your mother on the phone."

"_What?_" She couldn't have heard that right. "What do you want with _her_?"

"We don't have time to argue, Bonnie; now, _put your mother_ on the phone."

God, she hated it when he got condescending, but she held the cell out to her startled mother knowing that if she continued to talk to that infuriating vampire for any longer she was likely to throw her phone out the window in a fit of pique. "Damon wants to talk to you," she explained as Abby stared at the phone.

Taking it from her, Abby brought the mobile to her ear and spoke, her confusion evident in her tone. "Hello?"

Bonnie focused on driving, or tried to. She'd be lying if she said she wasn't trying to eavesdrop on the conversation happening beside her. Hearing one end of it wasn't good enough, especially when Abby exclaimed indignantly, "_Excuse me?_"

Quickly followed by an equally offended, "Who the hell do you think you are?"

What the hell was Damon saying to her?

"Abby, give me the phone," she demanded, reaching out to take it back. But Abby didn't hear her, too busy paying close attention to whatever Damon was saying.

She was quiet for what seemed a long time, just listening to Damon on the other end. Bonnie noticed her shot a look her way before ducking her head and using her curly hair as a curtain to block her face from Bonnie's view.

It wasn't until they reached the outskirts of town that Abby spoke again, "You're right. I mean, it was complicated at first but I could have..." She sighed, and it sounded like it came from the very depths of her soul. "Okay, let's do this."

Alarm bells rang in Bonnie's head. "Do what? What are you talking about?"

"Alright," Abby said, ignoring her, "see you then."

Abby hung up and placed the phone into the empty cup-holder between them.

"What was that about?" Bonnie asked as calmly as she could, even as, internally, worries were swarming in her stomach like moths.

Her mother gave her a long look before answering vaguely, "Choices."

* * *

They had been home only a few minutes when impatient knocking sounded at the front door.

Bonnie checked the peephole briefly before opening the door for Damon. He moved quickly into the living room and spun to face her as she shut the door behind him.

"Where's Abby?"

"I'm right here," Abby answered him directly, standing from her place at the kitchen table.

"Good," he responded, striding into the kitchen. "We don't have a lot of time."

"For what?" Bonnie asked, following after; a sense of foreboding growing with every step she took.

Damon glanced at her from the corner of his eye, but continued speaking to Abby, "Are you ready to do this?"

Abby nodded, her lips turned down in grim determination. "Let's just get this over with."

And Bonnie knew instinctively, even before Damon sped towards her mother, what was about to happen, but there was a moment – between her knowing and her fully comprehending that knowledge – that left her completely immobile.

And it was in this moment that Damon raced forward, tore into his wrist, held it to Abby's mouth and then snapped her neck.

The sound it made as the bones in her neck cracked echoed in Bonnie's ears long after Abby fell to the linoleum floor.

She stared dumbly at her mother's lifeless form for what felt like ages, not wanting to register what she was seeing as reality. Subconsciously, she knew they were planning something like this, but she hadn't wanted to believe it. Hadn't wanted to believe Damon would go behind her back and do it when he knew this was the _last_ thing she wanted.

She should have been quicker; she should have stopped him. Guilt rose like bile to coat the back of her throat. Slowly, she lifted her gaze to Damon. He was taking large, unnecessary breaths; his chest heaving like snapping Abby Bennett-Wilson's neck had been the most taxing thing he'd done all week.

"You son of a bitch," she spat, rage pushing the guilt roughly aside. She turned and stormed into the living room, away from the prone figure of her mother and the man who broke her.

"Bonnie..." His tone was soft, pacifying and it only served to stoke the flames of her anger.

She spun back to him, the furniture surrounding her vibrating with her barely restrained fury. "Get the hell out."

"Just hear me out –"

"_Hear you out?_ Damon! You just _did_ the very thing we were supposed to brainstorm a way to _avoid_," she hissed. A vase on the shelf beside her slid from its spot and landed in pieces on the hardwood floor.

"This wasn't some random impulse to save your life. We were running out of time and Abby agreed to this –"

"And what about her life? Is she going to turn?"

"How the hell should I know?" he snapped, his temper flaring before he took a deep breath and said evenly, "I didn't ask."

"You didn't _ask?_" Bonnie repeated, praying she hadn't heard him right.

"It wasn't relevant. Whether she transitions or not is her decision," he answered bluntly.

Her jaw slackened as she studied him with new eyes. Above her, a light bulb burst. "Get the fuck out of my house before I stake you."

He licked his lips slowly and stepped in her direction. Her muscles tensed in preparation; magic sparking at the edges of her fingers. His blue eyes bored into hers, his brow furrowing as he spoke solemnly, "I'd rather have you hate me and live than love me and die."

She swallowed harshly, her lips turning down. "You're such a selfish prick."

"Maybe... but this wasn't me being selfish –"

She scoffed disdainfully and he narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth.

"This was me saving you from throwing your life away." He leaned closer so their faces were level and she contemplated shoving him throw the opposite wall. "I may not know if Abby's going to transition, but there's a chance she will. With you there _wasn't_. I was just trying to keep everyone alive, Bonnie, and at least this way, if Abby does turn, she can still be a part of your life."

He made a valid point. He'd been doing that a lot lately... it was really pissing her off. "That's not the point," she countered stubbornly, "The point is that you didn't value her life in the first place."

He didn't try to deny it, simply tilted his head and squinted. "I got her permission first. Isn't that a step in the right direction?"

Bonnie's features scrunched in bemusement. That would have almost been endearing if it wasn't so sick and she wasn't so angry. "And what if she'd said no?" she pressed, unable to let it go.

"Then right now we'd be brainstorming our asses off and hoping that Elena is still in the land of the living."

Her gaze narrowed as she studied him closely. "Is that what this was about? Saving Elena?"

Guilt and an indefinable heat mixed unpleasantly in her stomach as soon as the words left her mouth.

"What?" He seemed perplexed by the notion, taking a step back to consider her properly as if he had just discovered something new. A tiny smirk twisted slowly onto his lips. "As misplaced as it is, I have to say, I'm enjoying the jealousy. It looks good on you."

"I'm not jealous!" she bristled, alarmed by the idea.

"Right," he nodded agreeably, sounding entirely unconvinced. He sobered a moment later, his expression serious. "Do you think I would have done this if it wasn't our only option? We didn't have time to come up with one of our clever plans and I knew this would damage my chances with you, but I did it anyways because _it needed to be done._"

His gaze was grave and earnest and far too blue for her to look anywhere else, as much as she wanted to. He stepped in close, his breath fanning warmly across her face as he continued to speak, "I never wanted to hurt you and I know this did and I'm sorry. I want you to feel like you can trust me, because you _can_ trust me, Bonnie. I'm not perfect and I'm going to screw up, a lot I'm sure, but I'm never going to stop loving you and I'm going to make damned sure the people you love are safe."

Her anger slipped away from her suddenly, leaving her feeling uncertain. "That sounds like a promise."

"It is. But I _am_ a selfish prick, so..." he threw her earlier words back at her cavalierly, "you should probably just accept the fact that, regardless of the situation, my priority is you. _Then_ I'll save all your little friends."

"They're your friends too," she felt the need to point out. "And I can take care of myself. In fact, I'll probably have to save your ass more than you save mine."

"Probably." He smiled and it was different from any other smile she'd ever seen. It was softer, warmer –borderline affectionate, and it was doing really uncomfortable things to her insides.

"Sorry to interrupt," her mother's voice drifted from the right startling Bonnie out her thoughts. Heat coloured her cheeks painfully as she turned her head to see Abby standing where the kitchen met the living room. How long had she been standing there?

"Abby," Damon greeted.

She nodded in acknowledgment. "May I have a moment with Bonnie?"

"Sure," he said, dragging the word out as he walked over to the front door. "I'll just take a drive. Be back in a few."

As he disappeared from view Bonnie slid her attention back to her mother. "You... agreed to this?"

"How couldn't I?" Abby questioned with a tilt of her head and a curious look at Bonnie. "He told me what you were willing to do for me and I just... I couldn't let you."

"Abby –"

"No," Abby held out a hand to quiet Bonnie's empty reassurances before they could be heard. "I haven't been a mother to you, Bonnie. Fifteen years and I..." She shook her head at a loss for words before finishing softly, "This was the least I could do. It's what any mother would do... for her daughter."

Bonnie worried her lip uselessly.

"I'm sorry," Abby continued suddenly, her hands flexing before playing with the edge of her jacket. "I stayed away to protect Elena, but I could have sent letters. I could have..." she shrugged, "found some way to contact you; it was just easier for me not to."

She lowered guilty eyes to the floor, frowning. "I didn't know what to say to you and I was afraid you wouldn't forgive me. Leaving you was the hardest thing I ever did and at the time it felt like my only option. It was easier for me to keep my distance... I didn't think about how selfish that was."

Bonnie nodded her head infinitesimally, her voice sounding surprisingly small to her own ears. "It's okay." Her palms were suddenly sweaty so she wiped them discretely on her jeans and took a shaky breath before asking, "Are you still...?"

..._ A witch?_ She couldn't bring herself to finish.

Her mother shook her head, understanding. "I feel different now, like I'm disconnected from..." she struggled for the right word until settling on, "nature."

"What are you going to do?"

Abby finally lifted her gaze from the floor and their eyes locked. "I was thinking," she answered bashfully, "I might stick around here for a while – if that's okay with you?"

Bonnie was almost lightheaded with relief. She hadn't realized how badly she wanted her mother to transition until she heard her say that. "Uh, yeah. That's fine," she said quickly then grimaced, hoping that hadn't sounded as eager as she suspected it did. Mentally shaking it off she continued, "And that works well because Damon can help you with... stuff."

A tiny smile curled at the corner of Abby's mouth as she nodded her head. "He's something else."

"That's for sure," Bonnie agreed before sobering. "I'm sorry, that he did this to you."

"He didn't do anything I didn't agree to."

"Yeah, but –"

"Try not to hold it against him," Abby cut her off dismissively. "He seems pretty serious about you." Bonnie felt her cheeks heat for the second time in so many minutes as her mother continued, "Never thought I'd say this about a vampire, but he's not a bad catch; a bit insensitive," she shrugged, "but he clearly cares. I'm happy for you."

"Oh no, we're not together." She waved her hands to ward off the idea.

"Oh," Abby's brow crumpled. "Does _he_ know that?"

"Of course he does."

"Because he told me you were getting married."

The heat intensified in Bonnie's already enflamed cheeks and she buried her head behind her hands in embarrassment. "Oh my God, he didn't?"

"He sounded pretty convinced about it too."

Bonnie peeked through her fingers to find Abby watching her in amusement. Rubbing her face tiredly, she let her hands drop. "We're not getting married – I mean..." she hesitantly corrected herself, "I don't know, it's possible, but nothing's official."

"But you're not together?"

"Right."

"Okay..." her mother relented, confusion written plainly across her features.

Bonnie scrunched her nose sheepishly, "It's a long story."

* * *

Abby stuck around for a while. It was nice – getting to know each other a little better while Damon taught Abby the ropes. There were plenty of awkward pauses and false starts, but eventually those faded. After a while, Bonnie even let her in on the whole Damon situation and it was interesting getting her mother's perspective.

"Most people would kill to know how a relationship works out before getting into it. You actually got that," Abby shrugged. "At least you know he's worth taking a chance on."

* * *

Bonnie woke up a few days later to find a text from Abby on her phone.

_**Gone home. Free this summer? Maybe you could visit. Call me**__. _– _9:56 am_

_Sounds great,_ Bonnie wrote back quickly, making a mental note to call her later.

A potential summer with her mother? Just last week that would have sounded ridiculous and borderline unpleasant, but now...

Strangely enough, Damon was to thank for that, or so Abby had convinced her. Seeing those two interact was beyond weird, but witnessing that lack of animosity Abby held for Damon helped Bonnie put aside the remnants of her own anger and disapproval.

And though she still wished they had brainstormed a way around the situation – time crisis be damned – she did have to give the boy some credit in helping to put her on the path to repairing her relationship with her mother.

_**At least you know he's worth taking a chance on**_, her mother's words echoed in her head as she climbed out of bed and stood inside of her closet, examining the contents closely. Excitement bubbled under her skin; she knew what she was going to do today.

* * *

An hour later she stood in front of the large, dark wooden door of the Salvatore boarding house. She contemplated turning back to her car and getting out of dodge before anyone realized she was there, but she refused to chicken out.

She rapped her knuckles softly against the door, only having to wait seconds for it to be answered by... Stefan.

He bowed his head and grimaced, "Bonnie. I'm –"

"Don't bother," she cut him off abruptly. "Damon's already made your excuses."

Though he'd buried it beneath piles of derision and insults, Damon had in fact apologized on his brother's behalf and dropped a covert hint or two that he wasn't such a bad guy and was worthy of forgiveness.

Stefan looked as shocked now as Bonnie had felt then, but he simply nodded his head in acceptance and said, "Damon warned me to stay away," he paused briefly, looking contrite, "I know what I was planning was unforgivable, but I wanted you to know how sorry I am. I let my fear get the best of me and made a rash decision."

Damon popped up over Stefan's shoulder unexpectedly, saving her from responding. His eyes narrowed sympathetically upon seeing her and he frowned, "Abby isn't here, Bonnie. She left this morning."

She waved off his concern. "I know. She texted me. We're actually making plans for the summer."

"Oh, good." His shoulders relaxed and he inconspicuously inserted himself between her and Stefan, resting his weight heavily against the doorframe. "And I see you've decided to spare my brother since he's currently still in one piece."

"Yeah," she agreed quietly.

Stefan shifted uncomfortably behind Damon before clearing his throat. "I'll just... leave you two to talk then."

Damon twisted his head, watching his brother disappear up the stairs. "Thanks, you're a peach."

An awkward few seconds passed with nothing being said until Damon eventually lifted an expectant eyebrow. "Was there something you wanted?"

"No, I just... " she trailed off, then started over, "I don't know what you said to Abby on the phone, but I just wanted to say thank you... for talking to her."

"No problem." He leaned forward, strands of hair falling into his too blue eyes. "How about The Grille? Your treat."

"Excuse me?"

"Well, if you really wanted to thank me you'd buy me a steak," he shrugged, smirking.

She rolled her eyes, but decided to humour him. "Okay."

This was actually the opening she was hoping for.

Her pulse spiked suddenly, her gaze flicking away and landing on anything that wasn't him. She crossed her arms tightly in front of her chest like that might help block the sound of her racing heart from his heightened senses.

_Just do it, Bonnie. This isn't going to get any easier_, she pep talked silently.

Forcing herself to take a large breath and look him dead in the eye, she blurted, "Lunch dates are lame though, so we should probably make it dinner."

He blinked owlishly at her before scrunching his brow and tilting his head. "I'm sorry; did you just ask me on a date?"

She cocked her hip and aimed for casual. "Let's not make a big deal out of it."

"Too late," he teased, tapping a finger against his temple. "I'm already picking out the china patterns."

She smiled even as she sunk her teeth into her bottom lip, feeling nervous energy shoot through her system with every beat of her heart. Attempting to level him a warning look, she said, "There's one condition."

"Which is?"

"We go slow."

"Oh, I can go slow." His smile was wide and suggestive. "As slow as you like."

Warmth crawled into her cheeks and she ducked her head. "Good... then, I guess I'll see you tonight."

"Ah!" he admonished, his hands finding her waist and pulling her close before she could get away. She couldn't help but notice he was all hard lines and planes as he held her against him. She chanced a glance from under her lashes and found him smiling down at her. "I've been too good for too long, so you'll have to forgive me," he whispered, snaking a hand into her hair as his mouth crashed down on hers.

She made a noise. She didn't mean to, but she totally did and he definitely heard because he pressed her closer and she could feel him smiling between the languid, open mouthed kisses he was giving her.

_God, if this is his idea of slow I'm screwed_, she thought idly as he pushed her against the side of the boarding house and dragged his lips to her throat.

And she found she didn't really mind.


	10. So Mote it Be

**Disclaim everything! I don't own BtVS or Liar, Liar or TVD... thanks for reminding me.**

**I want to send a massive thank you to everyone who took the time to read and review the last chapter in the Seeing Double series. It was much appriciated! It meant a lot to me.**

**As for this new story, I got the idea for it from an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I thought it would be fun to play with in the TVD-verse and I also added a hint of the movie Liar, Liar for good measure. I'm not explaining this very well... lol. Let's just say the concept is pretty crazy and I hope you'll enjoy the absurd ride I'm about to put you on. This story will be a two parter, so this is just the first half.**

**This is set at the beginning of episode 4x19, but for the purposes of the story prom isn't for a couple weeks still and Elena never turned off her emotions. Also, I won't be dealing with the Silas drama in this. Hope you don't mind.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**So Mote It Be**

* * *

"Has anyone heard anything from Bonnie?"

Damon's interest peaked and he looked over the edge of his book to study his brother standing in the centre of the room.

It was the first mention anyone had made of the witch all day. She had become a recluse since the whole sacrificing of twelve witches took place – no one had been able to get in contact with her. She wouldn't answer her phone, wouldn't answer her door and, besides the quick '_not dead'_ text she had sent to Caroline to get her off her back, she had made no effort to reach out to anyone.

"Not yet," Elena answered, shaking her pretty little head. "I think she's still processing losing Jeremy. It was hard enough going through it once. I couldn't imagine having to go through it twice."

Stefan crossed to Elena, resting a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

Damon frowned, clearing his throat pointedly. Stefan dropped his hand, crossing his arms over his chest instead.

"It's Bonnie. She can handle it. She just needs time. She'll be fine," Stefan reassured.

Damon snorted darkly, "What, are you people blind? She's hanging on by a thread."

"Damon," Stefan reprimanded.

"She is," he countered firmly. "I can't be the only one who sees this."

When neither of them made a response, he scoffed quietly, closed his book and went to his room.

* * *

Bonnie knelt in the trimmed grass in front of his tombstone. She had been here before, she couldn't remember how many times, only that it hurt each time like it was the first. The breeze played with a few strands of her hair and turned the warmth of her tears to ice as they trailed down her cheeks.

"That wasn't a goodbye, Jeremy. You were supposed to come back with us," she spoke, the words feeling both familiar and foreign on her tongue.

"Bonnie."

A tangled mess of emotions leaped in her chest as she turned, knowing what she'd find; hoping she'd be wrong. "Jeremy?" she whispered like a prayer.

The awe of seeing him standing there was always overpowering. She rushed to her feet so she could get closer. She needed to know this was real.

"Wake up."

Wake up? That's all he had to say to her?

"How are you here?" she questioned.

There was an overwhelming sense that she was forgetting something; something important. She felt suddenly flushed.

"Bonnie, _wake up_," he reiterated.

"I don't understand."

Why did she feel so warm? It was stiflingly hot and the breeze from earlier had all but disappeared.

"Open your eyes," he insisted urgently and when she looked at him in obvious incomprehension, he gripped her arms, "Bonnie, open your eyes!"

Straining to pry her eyes apart despite their heaviness, she became aware of a crackling noise. It sounded like it was coming from everywhere... and that heat she had noticed before became devastating in its intensity. It felt like she was on fire –

Her eyes shot open.

She was on fire!

"Oh my God!"

Orange flames licked dangerously close all around her. She quickly readjusted herself further away from the flames and waved a hand to disperse them. Smoke wafted from all the places the fire had touched, but nothing seemed marred or burned.

An unexpected sob choked its way past her lips and she buried her head in her hands, taking a deep breath to try and regain her composure.

She hadn't slept in over a week. Every time she tried it was always the same.

Sometimes the dreams would alter, but they were always about Jeremy. Sometimes she dreamt of him dying and not already dead and buried. She would see him being held down by Silas as the immortal drank. He would drink until Jeremy was nothing more than a husk with empty, dark eyes and Bonnie would wonder why she felt so weak and helpless in those moments.

Then she would wake to find a fire broken out in her home. This was the first time it had ever been so close.

Fear lapped at her insides and she wondered if next time the flames would take her.

She began to shake and, try as she might, she couldn't seem to stop. She had never felt so tired in all her life, not just physically but mentally as well. She was officially wrung out.

She just wanted the pain to go away.

She dragged a hand across her face and through her hair. Then, standing on shaky legs, she made her slow way to her room. Upon entering, she noticed her grimoire sitting innocently at the foot of her bed. Maybe...

Maybe she could find a spell to help her sleep. One that would ensure she didn't kill herself in the attempt. Maybe she could find something to help her with the pain...

She reached for the book with a desperation that frightened her and began flipping through the pages. Spell after spell flashed in front of her eyes, but none seemed quite right. She needed something more than just a simple sleeping spell – that might result in her being unable to rouse herself should a fire break out.

She needed something specific that would reflect her intentions perfectly.

Something caught her eye and she flipped back a few pages.

_**My Will Be Done**_

She read the little blurb under the title and hummed appreciatively.

The spell worked exactly as the title suggested. It allowed the castor to speak their will into existence, so theoretically she would be able to will away the fires and her dreams along with. Not to mention the constant ache in her chest.

Decided, and far too tired to question the soundness of this course of action, Bonnie went to work.

She drew the necessary pentagram and placed the necessary candles. Sitting down in the centre, she crossed her legs and focused her energy. Then she recited the spell from the book as efficiently as she could. The flames of the candles rose to towering heights and she could feel the power of the words as they fell from her lips, finishing, "As I speak it, so mote it be."

The candles flared even higher, so high she was worried they might kiss the ceiling and set the whole house aflame, but quickly after they burned down to nothing. Tendrils of smoke hovered in the air around her and Bonnie climbed to her feet.

Time to test this baby out.

"Pain, go away," she spoke firmly. She waited a few moments and, when the dull ache still resided in her chest, frowned.

She tried again. "Heart, heal."

Minutes passed and still nothing.

"Feel better!" she exclaimed angrily. Why wasn't anything happening? Did it take time to work?

She amended her command, "Feel better, _now!_" And again, seconds later, "_Now!_"

All she was feeling right now was like an idiot.

She sighed tiredly, a sense of defeat rushing over her.

_Maybe I should try something else?_

"Sleep and do not dream," she spoke, choosing her words carefully. "Sleep and do not start a fire. Do not use magic of any kind if unintended."

She crawled onto her bed and buried herself under her blankets, shutting her eyes and hoping for the best.

* * *

Hours later Bonnie jolted awake to find her whole room on fire. Snapping into action, she put out the flames with an anguished wail.

Holding her eyes tightly shut, she attempted to stem the tears that were threatening to fall. She couldn't break – she needed to be strong. But, despite her best efforts, the tears refused to be stayed.

She had no idea how long she cried for, but once her tears had dried the sun was streaming into her room with forceful optimism.

What she needed was to talk to someone...

She dragged herself out of bed and rummaged through the things piled on her computer desk until she found her phone. It was, as she had assumed it would be, completely dead. She plugged it into its adapter and waited for it to gain enough power so she could use it as it charged.

She kept herself busy by making a bowl of cereal and, reluctantly, eating it.

When the phone had enough juice, she scrolled through her contacts several times before coming to stop at Caroline.

There was a time when she and Caroline were barely friends. Elena had been the glue that held the two polar opposite girls together, but now Bonnie found herself turning to Caroline more often than not. Elena, on the other hand, she rarely talked to or even thought about, unless the girl needed saving.

A long, tired breath left her and she hit the call button.

Caroline answered on the second ring. "Bonnie?"

"Hey Care."

"Oh my God, Bonnie! Are you okay?"

Bonnie sat down on the wheelie chair by her computer desk. "No."

"What's wrong? Do you need me to come over?" Caroline's concern carried through the line.

"No," she began then hesitated, "I don't know... Maybe. I haven't been sleeping very well. I guess I could just use some company."

"Alright. It's settled, I'm coming over."

Bonnie almost smiled. "I'm kind of sick of my place. Could we make it yours?"

"Sure, I... ugh. The Original-pain-in-my-ass just walked in. Look, let me deal with this and I'll call you back."

The line went dead and Bonnie's jaw dropped.

Did Caroline just hang up on her to talk to Klaus? WTF?

_For someone who claims to hate the guy, she sure is quick to pay attention to him_, Bonnie thought bitterly.

Maybe it was the lack of sleep, but her emotions felt like they were on the surface of her skin. She felt raw and exposed and angry... and rejected.

Grinding the heel of her palm against her eyes, she bit out harshly, "She's always with Klaus! All the time! She spends more time with him than her own boyfriend. She should just marry him and then they can spend forever together."

Taking a large, calming breath, she stood and gave herself a shake in hopes of relieving some of the unexpected anger coursing through her veins.

She needed to get out of this fucking house. She felt like she was suffocating.

Having a plan of action, Bonnie set about making it happen. She had a shower, threw something on and gathered her things in record time, only pausing once to glance at her still charging phone. Deciding to leave it behind, Bonnie shot out of her room, down the stairs and out the front door.

* * *

She hadn't really thought about where she would go once she left her house. It did feel great not being inside, but now she felt a bit... lost.

She didn't want to go anywhere she'd know people, but growing up in Mystic Falls made that next to impossible. The town wasn't that big.

She wandered aimlessly for a while before ending up at The Grill, partly out of habit and partly because she couldn't think of anywhere else to go.

It was busy, which was nice. It made her feel like she could fade into the crowd and just be. Sliding into a booth, Bonnie waited patiently for a waiter to notice her.

She wondered if Matt was working today. If she had to see anyone she would want it to be Matt.

"Well look who decided to join the world of the living."

Ugh. Of course the first person she'd run into would be the antithesis of Matt.

Not even bothering to look up from her menu as he sat across from her, she asked, "What do you want, Damon?"

"Just saying hello," he answered nonchalantly, "You were cooped up in that house for so long all your little friends were getting worried. You look like shit by the way," he tagged almost as an afterthought.

"If you're done..." she trailed, hoping he would get the hint and leave.

"Do we have our resident witch back?" he continued, blatantly ignoring her.

She bristled and narrowed her eyes. "No."

The corners of his mouth turned down. "Elena's been a ball of sunshine lately, as you can imagine."

She wrinkled her nose in disgust. She shouldn't have to point this out to him but, "She just lost her brother."

"Yes, and instead of grieving for him, she's worrying about you. You're like an emotional scapegoat."

She sighed, "I'll talk to Elena. Happy?"

"Ecstatic," he answered dryly. "When?"

"When I feel like it," she snapped and he glared back at her.

"Perfect," he retorted. "Meanwhile, Stefan and his brooding forehead will play the sympathetic friend card."

She felt her brow lift of its own accord as she studied him. Seriously? He was last person who should be throwing stones.

"Stefan is a good man," she defended. "I sincerely doubt he'd ever try and start something. Actually, I wish he would. He needs to lighten up and have some fun. He should be happy. He deserves it."

She noticed the muscles in Damon's shoulders begin to stiffen as he leaned forward. "Stefan isn't as innocent as you seem to think he is."

"I know. I've seen him as The Ripper. He can be a monster." Leaning forward to mirror his pose, she finished pointedly, "But at least he tries _not_ to be one."

Fire burned in the depths of Damon's blue eyes and he all but snarled, "You, little witch, need to get off your high horse, 'cause one of these days all of the judgemental shit you spew is going to push everyone you love away and by the time you realize, it will be too late. Everyone will have stopped caring."

Her throat tightened painfully and she fought to keep her face neutral and her eyes level with his. The bastard always knew exactly what to say to hurt her the most. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of seeing her break. Working around the tightness of her throat, she bit out sarcastically, "Wow, Damon. Be honest and tell everyone what you _really_ think."

Their gazes remained locked for what felt like ages before he finally slid out of the booth and walked away.

A shaky breath tore itself from her centre and she finally allowed a few tears to slip over her cheeks, though she was quick to wipe them away.

"Bonnie? Are you okay?"

She turned her head to see Matt standing at the edge of her booth eyeing her in concern.

"I..." she hesitated, unsure of what to tell him. The truth was she wasn't okay, but Matt had enough on his plate already without having to worry about her problems, so she gave him a watery smile and said, "I could use a milkshake."

A smile slipped easily across his features and he nodded, "Coming right up. Um... hey, listen, I could probably get my break now... would you mind if I came and sat with you?"

Her heart melted and she smiled a little brighter, "Yeah that would be nice."

* * *

Damon entered the boarding house and froze.

Standing in his living room were Vampire Barbie and Klaus.

No... Not standing; _embracing_. Their arms were wound tightly around one another and it seemed as if they were giving each other Eskimo kisses as Stefan _applauded_ from his spot a few feet away.

"What the hell?" Damon whispered to himself.

Elena, having noticed him enter, rushed to his side and gripped his arm. "Damon, thank God. Something really weird is going on."

"No kidding," he agreed, before addressing the room at large, "What the hell is happening?"

Caroline spun to him and exclaimed in elation, "Klaus and I are getting married!"

Shock rippled through his system. There's no way he heard that right. "What?"

"I know," Stefan chimed exuberantly, "I'm so happy for them."

"_What?_" Damon reiterated, almost beside himself with disbelief.

"I love weddings!" Stefan elaborated with a large arm gesture and easy smile.

"And despite our often uneasy history, I have deigned to extend an invitation to both you and your brother, as a courtesy to my fair fiancée," Klaus offered up as explanation for his visit. Caroline trilled in excitement.

"Hey, no hard feelings," Stefan spoke earnestly. "In fact, my feelings would be even softer if you made me your best man."

Damon swung his head towards Elena to make sure he wasn't the only one witnessing this. She frowned and shook her head as if to say, _'I'm as lost as you are.'_

Meanwhile, Klaus laughed and bowed his head in apology. "I'm afraid that honour already resides with my brother, Elijah."

"Of course," Stefan consented, walking over and slapping Klaus on the back, "just make sure to play Bon Jovi at the reception and all will be forgiven."

"Done."

"Oh my God," Damon finally snapped, "has everyone taken crazy pills today? This isn't _normal_."

"It is a tad sudden," Klaus agreed amiably.

Elena took a small step forward and spoke, "I think what Damon means is that –"

"Don't speak for me, Elena. I hate it when you do that," Damon interrupted irritably. She glanced at him, looking both hurt and surprised and then took a step back.

Okay wow. Next time he needed to think that and not say it out loud.

A heavy sigh fell past his lips and he tried again, "None of you find this the least bit suspicious? Everyone getting along... Klaus and Caroline suddenly wanting to get married..."

"We're in love," Caroline defended quickly.

"Since when?"

She hesitated, her brow scrunching as she thought about it. Gradually she spoke, turning back to face the man in question, "I feel like I've always loved him."

He smiled. "And I you."

They fell into each other's arms and proceeded to display a copious amount of affection.

Damon twisted his features in disgust and muttered darkly, "I think I'm going to throw up," before he hit them with the big guns. "What about Lockwood?"

Caroline pulled away from Klaus the smallest amount necessary to answer, "I'm sure he'll understand."

"And if he doesn't," Klaus tagged on lightly, "I'll kill him."

He bent his head to kiss Caroline but she halted his progress with a firm hand against his lips. "Uh, you're not killing Tyler."

"I am if he gets in my way," Klaus countered removing her hand with an amused smile.

"He's my friend, Klaus!"

"Perhaps you need _new_ friends, love."

"If you loved me," she bristled, "you wouldn't hurt my friends!"

"And if _you loved me_," he growled, his amusement gone, "you would support my every decision!"

"Well, my work here is done," Damon commented, shifting his focus from the lover's spat to his brother who was making his way to the front door. "Where are you going?"

"Not sure. Thought I'd swing by the nearest college and see if they have any parties worth crashing tonight," he responded with an easy smile. "Why? Want to join?"

"Yes," he answered quickly, surprising himself, and then tacked on to save face, "but I won't because this sounds like Ripper Stefan behaviour which I will not condone."

Stefan held up a hand in Scout's Honour. "I solemnly swear I'm not going for the blood... just the sex."

"Is that a good idea?" Elena asked.

"It's a great idea," Stefan reassured with a sultry tilt to his lips, "In fact, I think you have vivid memories of just how great it can be."

Whoa. Did Stefan just blatantly flirt with his girlfriend?

Damon twisted his head to catch Elena blushing and pushing strands of her hair behind her ear.

He frowned. "Do you mind keeping the flirting to a minimum? With my luck she'd be back in your arms by the end of the night and all my hard work will have been for nought."

Holy shit... Did he just say that _out loud_?

Apparently, yes, because Elena stiffened beside him and Stefan had the audacity to _laugh._

"You're probably right," Stefan agreed, sending the girl in question a long look and dirty smile. "I guess I'll catch you later."

And he was out the door. Damon's eyes felt like they were about to pop out of his head.

"What the fuck just happened?"

"Something weird is going on," Elena said turning to him.

He released a long suffering sigh, "We've already established that, Elena. Honestly, if it wasn't for your looks I don't know how I'd put with you sometimes."

Her jaw dropped and so did his.

"What is going on with you, Damon?" she said, affronted.

He raised a hand to ward off her offence and explained, "I just meant that your looks are a big part of why I'm interested in you."

Noooooooo, no. That's not what he meant to say!

Elena, her eyes shining in betrayal, whispered, "Are you saying you don't love me?"

"No! I love you! I just don't love every part of you –" he cut himself off and attempted to backtrack, "You're sweet and caring and you forgive me at the drop of a hat, which I love, but sometimes your personality is a little bland. I'd call it vanilla, but that would be an insult to the flavour vanilla."

She took a sudden step back as if he had physically struck her.

He struggled to lie and just tell her he loved her exactly the way she was, but the truth continued to spill from his lips like word vomit.

"It's nice to be around you. It's just that sometimes I wish you were Katherine – _oh my God_, shut up, Damon!"

He forced his fist against his lips and held it there to stop himself from saying anything else.

"Is that how you really feel?" she asked, sounding horribly broken.

He kept his fist pressed firmly against his mouth and attempted to shake his head. He could feel it moving up and down rather than the desired left to right and closed his eyes in defeat.

"I think I need some air."

He felt her push by him and heard the door open and close seconds later.

He let his arm drop back to his side. Cracking an eye open, he noticed Klaus and Caroline making a home for themselves on his couch. They appeared to have made up; if the horrendous cooing noises they kept making to each other were any indication.

What the _hell_ was going on? More importantly, what the hell was going on _with him_?

He had a vague suspicion, and there were a couple ways he could think to test it.

Speeding to his room, he shut the door and stood in front of his full-length mirror, giving himself a onceover with narrowed eyes.

Everything looked right, clad as he usually was in his all black ensemble. He met his gaze in the mirror and took a deep breath.

"The colour of my shirt is bl –" the word _blue_ jammed in his throat painfully. He growled and tried again. "The colour of my shirt is bluuuuaaack. God damn it!"

Why couldn't he lie?

He stifled the sudden desire to toss his mirror out the window and changed tactics. It was possible that _blue_ was too close to _black_ in pronunciation. He needed to try a different colour. He was aware that he was grasping at straws, but he was willing to ignore that for now.

"The colour of my shirt is –" he took a deep breath and concentrated on saying the word _white_. He watched in the mirror closely as his mouth moved to shape the W.

"Wha..." He bared his teeth in an attempt to keep his lips from meeting and creating a b-sound. Twisting his head and scrunching his features, he could feel the compulsion to press his lips together mounting until finally he burst, "BLACK! It's fucking black!"

He turned from his image in disgust. He refused to believe this was happening. There was still one test he wanted to try. Pulling out his cell phone, he called his brother.

"Changed your mind?" Stefan enquired in way of greeting.

"No. I need a favour."

"Shoot."

"I need you to ask me something you know I'd lie about."

"Uh... What day is it today?"

He rolled his eyes. "Ha ha, I'm a liar. I get it. I'm being serious right now."

"Okay..." Stefan gave a thoughtful pause and then asked, "Do you ever think about Mother?"

_Not really. _Damon took a deep breath, the words he wanted to say on the tip of his tongue, and spoke, "All the time. I've never loved anyone so much, other than you, so yeah. I think about her a lot – FUCK!" He growled in frustration, speeding over to his pile of books and flinging one across the room.

"Wow," Stefan commented quietly from his end, "What's going on with you?"

"I don't know. I was thinking a truth spell, but that doesn't explain why Klaroline is taking place in our living room or why you're acting so fucking weird."

"Hey," his brother protested.

"You're going to a college party to have meaningless sex. The Stefan I know doesn't know how to have that kind of fun..." Damon trailed off as he remembered something.

"_**...He needs to lighten up and have some fun. He should be happy. He deserves it."**_

No. No way.

Bonnie Bennett didn't have the power to just say things and make them happen. But... he remembered her staring him down with those stupidly vibrant green eyes of hers and saying,

"_**Wow, Damon. Be honest and tell everyone what you **_**really**_** think."**_

"Damon?" Stefan called, bringing him out of his thoughts. "You still there?"

"Would you say you were happy right now?"

Stefan paused thoughtfully before saying, "Yeah, I feel really happy actually. Why?"

"I think I know what's going on."

* * *

Matt was a lifesaver. A half hour spent in his company and Bonnie was feeling a bit less like she was falling apart and a bit more like her old self again. He wheedled her concerns from her with thoughtful questions, he listened as she vented and he never judged, even as she confessed how she wished people would stop making everything about Elena all the time.

She felt horrible for saying it, but once the words were spoken it was like a weight had lifted off her chest. Ever since the Salvatore brothers came to town, Bonnie felt like her emotions and problems had become insignificant in comparison to Elena's needs. The past two years she'd been so focused on Elena's problems, constantly pushing her own to the side, that her own issues – even when related to Elena's – felt like they needed to be handled separately; away from the group.

It felt like she wasn't allowed to involve anyone else into her problems because that would be taking away from the more important issue of whatever Elena was dealing with.

Matt, shocking Bonnie down to her core, admitted to feeling much the same.

He confessed that he was struggling in a lot of his classes. Normally he would have turned to Bonnie for help, but he knew she was busy with witch stuff for Elena, so he felt it would be wrong to burden her with his problems. It made him feel isolated.

"I will gladly help you with whatever classes you need help with," Bonnie was quick to offer.

Matt wrinkled his brow. "I didn't tell you that in a covert attempt to get help."

"I know, but I want to. Besides, I could use a non-supernatural distraction right about now," she reassured.

He wavered, "You sure?"

"Positive."

"Well, if you're sure, that would be awesome." Sparing a glance at his watch, he said, "I should probably get back to work now."

"Thanks, Matt – for doing this for me."

"You would have done the same for me," he responded firmly before smiling. "I miss us hanging out."

"I do too. We need to do this more often."

"Definitely."

He slid out of the booth and made his way back into the kitchen as Bonnie paid for her milkshake and stood to leave.

Once outside she paused. She knew she didn't want to go home just yet, but where to next?

There was the park, the library... Wow. How long since she'd been to the library?

She started walking in the appropriate direction. She hadn't read a good book in ages. Of course now a-days most young adult fiction seemed to have the same storyline... usually supernatural.

She frowned and stopped walking.

Yeah, maybe not the library then.

A sudden honk made her heart jump in her chest and she swiveled her head to look for the source, only to find Damon Salvatore parked in his blue Camaro scowling at her from a few feet away.

"What did you do?" he asked pointedly.

She thought about ignoring him and just walking away, but she had no destination in mind and he was sure to follow after her. "Well there goes my good mood," she grumbled darkly.

Paying her words no mind, he altered, "Actually, as curious as I am, it doesn't really matter what you did – just fix it."

"What are you talking about?" she snapped.

He stepped out of his car abruptly, slamming his door closed and coming stand in front of her. She could feel the anger radiating off him from under his skin and it made her a little nervous. "Whatever spell you cast – undo it."

"What spell?"

"The one that forces me to tell the truth," he snarled.

She furrowed her brow and shook her head. "I didn't put a truth spell on you."

"I know."

Her patience dissolved quickly and she exclaimed in frustration, "Then what the hell are you talking about?"

His nostrils flared and eyes pulsed to red before he got a handle on himself and directed with composure, "Get in the car. You need to see your handy work."

She scoffed, crossing her arms. "I'm not going anywhere with you."

His composure melted and he gritted through a clenched jaw, "So help me, Bonnie Bennett, I will throw you over my shoulder and carry you if I have to. I don't care if you try to set me on fire; you are coming with me."

Her temper lit like a fuse and she was ready to show him exactly what Expression magic could do – screw the witnesses – when she heard her name being called.

Turning toward the sound she spotted Matt running to catch up with her.

"Matt, what's going on?" she asked once he was within hearing range. Had she left something at The Grill? She would feel guilty if he had to leave the restaurant just to return something to her. Luckily they were only a block away so he didn't have far to run.

"I quit my job."

Bonnie almost choked on the air as it rushed into her lungs. "What?"

"I realized half the reason we never hang out is because I'm always working. So I quit," he stated simply, like it made perfect sense.

He quit his job so they could hang out more often...? Her stomach knotted.

"Matt that's... crazy..." she trailed off, not really knowing what else to say and feeling slightly overwhelmed.

"But think of all the time we can spend together now. We can go catch a movie or," he shrugged, "just chill. Whatever you want."

Damon, who had been watching her intently, interceded, "I'm going to go off your expression and assume you have no idea what's going on."

She gave him the side-eye. "And you do?"

He shrugged. "A vague one."

"Do you know how to make it stop?"

"Nope, but I could probably help you figure it out."

"Hey, Damon, do you mind?" Matt said, stepping between them and blocking her view of the vampire. "Bonnie and I are trying to make plans here."

"Well, you're going to have to reschedule. She's kind of busy right now."

"No, we need to hang out," he insisted.

Damon moved his head so he could see Bonnie over Matt's shoulder. "Bonnie? You want to deal with this?"

She bit her lip. She had told Matt they needed to hang out more and now he was adamant that they do so. Two seconds ago Damon had been going on about a spell... There was only one explanation that came to her mind.

But if this was the result of magic, what would happen to Matt if she refused to spend time with him?

"I don't know... Maybe we should just let him help us," she offered as compromise.

"What? _No_," Damon said, sounding almost petulant. "I like it when it's just us."

Surprise surged through her system while Damon released a sudden growl and focused hard on something across the street. Matt spun on his heel to face her.

"Of course I can help. What do you need?"

She looked at Damon, but he refused to meet her gaze. Sighing, she answered Matt carefully, making sure not to say anything that might be interpreted as a command. "Could you let me and Damon figure this out?"

"Sure."

"Thanks."

She stepped around Matt towards Damon who moved to open the car door for her. Clambering inside she heard the soft leather of the back seat being rubbed as Matt climbed in behind her. She twisted in her seat to shoot him a curious look while Damon yelled, "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Coming with."

"Like hell you are. Get the fuck out of my car."

"I need to hang out with Bonnie," Matt reiterated pointedly.

Damon spun to face her, his eyes wide and blazing. "Bonnie. Tell him to get of my car."

She squinted up at him, the corner of her lips turning down. "I'd like to avoid giving any more orders if it's all the same to you... It's only this once, Damon. It won't hurt to have an extra pair of eyes."

He raised his gaze briefly to the sky before relenting, "Fine."

And maybe he slammed her door shut with a little more force than necessary, but he let the issue drop so Bonnie counted that as a win.

* * *

Turning off of Main Street onto a smaller side road Damon shifted his attention to Bonnie and cocked a curious brow. "So which spell was it?"

She felt her energy drain away and, using her arm as a pillow, rested her head against the side of the car.

"Well?" he eventually pressed when no answer was provided.

"I... cast a My Will Be Done spell this morning."

He hummed in recognition.

"You know of it?" she asked, lifting her head to look at him.

"I've heard of it. Like the witch's version of compulsion. That would explain... everything."

"But it didn't work," she said, twisting in her seat to face him. "When I tried using it on myself, nothing happened."

He scrunched his face, shaking his head. "That's because that kind of spell doesn't work on the caster. It would be like me looking in a mirror trying to compel myself. It's meant for other people, hence the whole _my_ _will be done_ thing."

He turned onto a residential street in the direction of her house. Tossing her another curious look, he asked, "Why were you trying to use it on yourself?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Is something wrong, Bonnie?" Matt chimed in concern from the back seat.

"It's nothing, Matt," she reassured, shooting him a half-hearted smile over her shoulder. From the corner of her eye she noticed Damon frown.

"What could Bonnie Bennett possibly need from a spell like that?"

"Damon..." she warned.

"Something obviously personal since you're not being very forthcoming right now," he continued carelessly, goading, "Could it be the little witch is in need of help but is too stubborn to ask for it?"

"What does it matter why I used it?" she huffed irritably.

"I'm worried about you," he blurted before snarling through gritted teeth, "Now answer the fucking question!"

Bonnie's jaw slackened and she watched him closely. He was so tightly coiled that he looked ready to bolt out of the moving car with the slightest provocation. He was gripping the steering wheel with enough force to warp the metal beneath his fingers, and the muscles in his shoulders and neck were bunched painfully.

Hesitating for just a moment, she decided to throw him a bone.

"I haven't been sleeping very well. I've... been setting things on fire in my sleep."

"_What?_" he exclaimed, slamming suddenly on the breaks and causing her seatbelt to cut uncomfortably into her shoulder as it held her firmly in place.

Luckily there were no cars behind them because it didn't look like he was going to be pulling over any time soon as he put the car in park right there in the middle of the lane.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Matt demanded while Damon turned and gave her his full attention.

Bonnie struggled to come up with an explanation that would make sense to either of them. "It's like I told you," she said, focusing on Matt, "My problems feel like they should be mine alone."

"How long has this been going on?" asked Damon tightly.

She shrugged in an attempt to downplay the truth, "Just the past week or so."

His eyes bugged. "And you didn't think you should mention this to anyone? What the hell were you waiting for, Bonnie? Someone to find you _charred remains_?"

"I was handling it –"

"You weren't handling _shit_ –"

"No one could help me anyways! All my friends are vampires and the last time I checked, fire still kills vampires."

He huffed in frustration. "What about Matt? He's human."

"Yeah," agreed Matt, resting a firm hand on her shoulder. "You should have come to me, Bonnie."

Bonnie shook her head. "Not to mention the fact that I'm pretty sure fire is just as deadly to bus boys as it is vampires; you have enough crap to deal with. The last thing you need is mine too."

"Next time, let me be the judge of that, okay?"

A car honked aggressively behind them and Damon sent a vicious look into his rear view mirror before putting the Camaro in drive and taking off.

"Nobody likes a martyr, Bonnie. Look at Joan of Arc. The people she was helping decided to burn her at the stake."

"First of all," she began, pointing her index finger at him for added effect, "that's an extreme case and secondly, I'm not being a martyr."

He arched an inquiring brow in her direction. "Oh? And what do you call sacrificing yourself over and over again for the lives of other people?"

"Doing what's necessary," she countered firmly.

"Bullshit. If it made Elena happy, I bet you'd be willing to play the sacrificial lamb regardless of whether it was necessary or not. _You_ have a _complex_."

The truth behind his words was disquieting. She could believe that of herself, but she didn't want to. She wanted to believe that she still valued her life enough that she wouldn't part with it for something that wasn't important.

"Hey, don't be so hard on her," Matt defended, leaning back in his seat. "She was only doing what she thought was right."

Damon glared at him in the review mirror. "Shut up, Mutt. No one invited you."

"And no one asked you to be such a dick and yet, here we are."

Damon's glare intensified. "How would you like to be thrown out of a moving car?"

"Hey!" Bonnie interrupted before Matt could respond, "Do I need to tell you guys to stop fighting?"

Damon rolled his eyes and Matt, crossing his arms, frowned at the passing scenery, but neither of them said anything.

* * *

Bonnie climbed the stairs up to her room in record time. She grabbed her grimoire and was almost out the door again when she doubled back. Quickly heading to her computer desk, she unhooked her cell from its charger and threw it in her pocket. Then she was down the stairs, out the door and back in Damon's car.

They drove in silence, as they had been since the abrupt end of their last conversation. If Bonnie were honest, she kind of wished Damon was talking. One thing she had to say for him, he was an excellent distraction. Not once since he found her outside The Grill had she felt depressed or helpless. There was something about being around the egotistical vampire that made her feel more confident and in control.

She never doubted herself or what she was capable of when she was with him.

He was also very talented at irritating her to the point where she could focus on nothing else but how irritated she was. She could actually go for that right now...

The quiet of the car felt heavy to her and she could feel the seeds of her depression struggling to take root again.

A sudden beep from her pocket alerted her to a text message. Scooping her phone out, she checked it.

She had four missed calls and two texts – all from Caroline.

_**Best. News. Ever! Call me when you get this!**_ – _12:33pm_

_**Bonnie! I'm dying to tell you the good news! CALL ME!**_ – _1:18pm_

A strange combination of curiosity and dread swirled in the pit of Bonnie's stomach as she pressed the call button.

"Bonnie?" Caroline answered with barely contained excitement.

"Care? You have good news?"

"Oh this should be good," Damon chuckled darkly to himself and she eyed him closely as Caroline began squealing in delight.

"Bonnie! I'm getting married!"

"What?" Bonnie exclaimed, disbelief coursing through her veins. She couldn't have heard that right.

"Klaus proposed! Isn't it great?"

"_What?_"

"My reaction exactly," Damon commented from beside her.

Oh god. She had completely forgotten what she'd said about Caroline!

She tossed Damon a glare. "You knew about this and didn't tell me?"

"I was more concerned with my own problems." He shrugged casually.

"Is that Damon? Why are you with Damon?" Caroline asked.

Bonnie groaned. "Ugh, long story."

"Wait, what's going on? I'm completely lost here," Matt questioned from the back seat.

"That sounded like Matt..." Caroline said, sounding confused.

"It was," Bonnie answered simply before turning to face Matt and filling him in, "Caroline's marrying Klaus."

"_What?_" Matt exclaimed, his eyes bugging.

"You're with Damon and Matt... _at the same time_? Weird combination," Caroline said.

"Tell me about it," she replied unthinkingly.

"Because Damon and Matt are polar opposites and I can't imagine them ever wanting to be around each other for an extended period of time," Caroline proceeded to explain.

Bonnie squeezed her eyes shut, cursing softly under her breath. She had to be more careful.

"And they really don't have a _reason_ to interact, you know," Caroline continued.

"Why is she going on about that?" Damon questioned.

"I told her to _tell me about it,_" Bonnie muttered.

"Well then just _tell her_ _to stop_."

She pulled the phone away from her ear, covering it with her hand to muffle the sound. She could still hear Caroline talking on the other end as she popped her eyes open to look beseechingly at Damon, "But what if she goes mute entirely?"

"You say that like it would be a bad thing," he responded lightly, an amused grin peeking at the corner of his lips.

She glared at the side of his head and brought the phone back to her ear.

Caroline was still going. "And Matt has a tendency to stay away from all things supernatural, especially –"

"Caroline," Bonnie interrupted, "You can stop telling me about it now."

"Oh, it's okay. I don't mind," she replied breezily before starting up again.

"What the hell was that?" Damon scoffed, his attention fixed on her. "Don't pussy-foot around, Bonnie. Be aggressive."

Bonnie took a deep breath before cutting off her friend for the second time, speaking firmly, "Care. Stop telling me about it."

"Okay," Caroline assented quickly. "I don't know why I wanted to talk about that anyways when we have my wedding to plan!"

Damon made a long suffering noise. "Too bad you were wrong about the mute thing."

* * *

"Looks like Klaroline have finally vacated the premises," Damon commented, giving the living room a sweeping glance as they entered the boarding house.

"Klaroline?" Bonnie asked, sliding passed him and making herself comfortable on the couch.

"Klaus and Caroline," he clarified, standing in front of the fireplace.

"Of course he would come up with a name for them," Matt said, sitting right beside Bonnie and draping an arm casually over the couch behind her head. Damon narrowed his eyes in their direction.

"Don't get too comfortable. We're working in the library."

"Why?" Matt's brow scrunched in confusion. "What's wrong with right here?"

"Because I don't want you sitting that close to her," he snapped.

Everything went very still.

Bonnie's eyebrows kissed her hairline as she watched Damon squint and grit his teeth as if he were in physical pain. Slowly, with great effort, he managed to bite out, "Besides... the rest of the grimoires are stored in the library; it will save time if we just go there."

Matt gave a little jerk as he snorted loudly in disbelief.

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Damon asked tensely. She could see his muscles coiling in preparation to strike and apprehension squirmed in Bonnie's stomach.

Damon was feeling vulnerable right now, and when Damon felt vulnerable he lashed out... and Matt was cautious, but he wouldn't back down if he felt someone was trying to bully him. Which, of course, Damon was.

She could feel the tension mounting at an alarming rate between both men.

Shifting forward hastily, Bonnie held her hands out before anyone could say or do anything more. "Whoa guys, let's just..." she faltered, the words _calm down_ freezing on her tongue. Would that be a command? "We should just – How about we... um... I think the library sounds good," she finished lamely.

"You know you don't have to humour him, right?" Matt shifted until he was facing her properly.

Damon growled threateningly and Bonnie sent him a reproachful gaze. He rolled his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest, and looked away.

"I'm not humouring anyone," she responded before speaking carefully, "I just think that fighting won't solve anything and this really isn't that big of a deal, so... library?"

"I guess so..." Matt agreed reluctantly and Bonnie stood up from her seat, making her way to the Salvatore library.

Behind her she heard Matt exclaim quietly, "Hey!" and Damon saying, "It's called breathing room. Why don't you try giving her some?"

"Bonnie _wants_ me around her," Matt replied stubbornly.

"Just stay the hell out of my way."

Bonnie rolled her eyes skyward and begged for patience. This was going to be a long day. "Guys!" she called sharply over her shoulder and they simultaneously answered with a quick,

"Coming!"

* * *

The next half hour was spent scouring over grimoires, both Bonnie's and the horde of grimoires they kept stored in the library, for some sort of counter spell. Or, more accurately, Bonnie scoured her grimoire while Matt periodically tried to get her attention and Damon thwarted his every attempt with a quickness.

They were situated at one of the tables. Damon was to her left, Matt to her right and both were far too close for her liking. "Could I get some space please?" she asked, not for the first time, and Matt shuffled his chair a bit to the side. Damon didn't move an inch.

"Damon?" She looked at him pointedly.

He lifted an eyebrow in return. "Yes?"

"Are you going to move?"

He smiled. "Nope." He made sure to pop the P for added effect.

"Do you get some kind of weird kick out of annoying me?"

He looked almost thoughtful for a moment before he answered, "Yeah, actually, I do."

"Colour me surprised," she deadpanned and, faster than she could blink, he pressed his mouth to hers. His teeth caught at her bottom lip and he tugged it gently. Bonnie gasped against his mouth and flung herself away from him so harshly she almost landed in Matt's lap.

"Damon!" she exclaimed, her heart skittering wildly in her chest. Behind her she could hear Matt getting loudly to his feet, saying,

"What the hell, man?"

"Surprise," Damon sang weakly, though he looked as shocked by his actions as Bonnie was. He was unnaturally still, his shoulders and neck tense as he avoided her gaze.

"I think you owe her an apology," Matt said firmly.

"No, it's fine," Bonnie interjected before Damon could react. She placed a hand on Matt's arm with enough pressure that he sat back down. "It was the spell. I need to remember to think before I speak."

Matt's brow crumpled as he studied her. "You don't have to make excuses for him, Bonnie."

"Damon is the last person I'd make excuses for, and he knows it too." She turned her head to see Damon nodding absently with her assessment.

"Still, it wouldn't kill the guy to say sorry."

"I can't," Damon said tightly, his attention fixed unseeingly to a spot on the table as he leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest.

"You can't? Or you just don't want to?"

"_I can't_," he bit out harshly, finally swinging his gaze to them. "In order for me to apologize I'd have to be sorry and I'm not sorry. Not even a little bit. In fact, _I'd do it again_ given half the chance."

His eyes were wide, intense and slightly homicidal, and Bonnie felt heat rising slowly to her cheeks. "Okay," she said loudly, "moving on."

She turned resolutely back to her spell book and flipped a page.


	11. As I Speak It

**Thank you for all the love for this new series! I'm glad you guys are enjoying, and I'm sorry about the wait.**

**This is the second part of the So Mote it Be series. I honestly thought this story would only be two parts, but it turns out it's going to be a three-parter. Also, Caroline says something in this chapter that may seem like it's being disregarded, but it will be addressed properly in the next chapter.**

* * *

Damon tilted his head to the side and listened closely. He could hear the sound of multiple car doors opening and slamming shut; footsteps and people's voices laughing and calling to one another; the sound of several heavy objects being half lifted and half dragged up the front lawn of the boarding house.

His brow crinkled in concentration and he noticed Bonnie watching him curiously. "We have uninvited guests."

"Should we check it out?" she asked and Matt perked up beside her.

"No, I'll go. You stay here and keep looking through the grimoires." He wanted this spell reversed as quickly as possible before he said something he couldn't take back. Standing, he pushed the grimoire he had been looking through closer to her and made to leave the room when a sudden thought stopped him.

Turning back, he examined the picture Bonnie and Matt made. Matt specifically as he hovered over Bonnie's shoulder, despite the fact that they were looking at two different books. Irritation flared in his chest as his lips pulled down in displeasure. He didn't understand how Matt's need to 'hang out' translated to him constantly hanging all over Bonnie.

"On second thought," he said, grabbing their attention, "Bonnie, why don't you come with me?"

He could hear someone opening the front door and people pouring into his living room as Bonnie debated what the better course of action would be.

"Sure," she said eventually, pushing away from the table. "I could use a break."

"I'll come too," Matt said quickly.

Damon rolled his eyes, but refrained from speaking, knowing if he opened his mouth something entirely too honest would come out. Spinning around he made a beeline for the living room and was greeted with a steadily crowding room of college students. "What the fuck?"

"Hey," Stefan hailed him, popping out of the throng of people unexpectedly, a red solo cup in one hand.

"Please tell me I'm hallucinating and these people aren't actually in my house," Damon griped and Stefan shrugged noncommittally. "I thought you were going to Whitmore?"

"I was, but then I thought: why go to the party when I can make the party come to me?"

Like it had been cued, someone turned on the surround sound stereo and music began blasting from every corner of the room.

Stefan's gaze drifted a few feet behind Damon and, smile spreading across his face, he pushed Damon roughly to the side to get by.

Stumbling, Damon spun to glare at Stefan's back only to see him lifting the little witch off her feet. "Bonnie!" he greeted, squeezing her close.

"Stefan, hey..." she replied, returning the hug awkwardly and catching Damon's gaze over his brother's shoulder. Her green eyes were wide and saying 'get him off me.' At least they were to Damon.

He moved quickly, pulling his brother gently away from Bonnie and resisting the urge to literally insert himself between them.

"It's good to see you out of the house," Stefan continued, unperturbed by Damon's restraining hand on his shoulder. "You look tired. You okay?"

"I've been better," she answered with a sheepish smile.

"Here, have a beer." He shoved his cup in her direction and she took it gratefully. "Take a load off."

"Thanks."

Damon reached for the drink and pried it lightly from Bonnie's fingers. She frowned, but let him take it. "Normally I'd condone the idea of a drunk Bonnie, but we need you sober."

She bit her lip, nodding before she knit her brow and reconsidered, "One drink won't hurt though, right?"

She reached to take the cup back from him and he lifted it above her head where she couldn't grasp it. In his periphery he noticed Matt shake his head and toss a look at Stefan, but was too distracted by Bonnie to be annoyed. She bounced up on her toes once or twice, before crossing her arms over her chest and glaring. "Very mature," she commented darkly.

"Hey, if you can take it from me, it's all yours," he stated teasingly, holding the beer just a little higher, knowing she'd never be able to reach.

"Is that a promise?" She lifted an appraising brow.

"If you want it to be."

A sinful smile curved her lips and excitement hummed pleasantly under his skin. "Damon," she spoke slowly, carefully.

"Yes." His lips pulled up at one corner as he felt the hum turn into a pulse.

"Give me the cup."

_Fuck._ He had forgotten about that.

Disappointment flushing away the excitement, he closed his eyes and handed the cup over as slowly as the compulsion would allow him to. "Thank you," she sang sweetly as soon as her hands wrapped around the cool red plastic.

"That was below the belt, Bennett," he said, slitting his eyes open to see her shrug.

"It worked, didn't it?"

"As entertaining as it is to watch you two flirt," Stefan gestured between them and Bonnie's eyes widened dramatically; Damon had to bite his lip to keep from smiling, "I have more important things to do, like trying to get laid."

* * *

Bonnie watched as Stefan slapped a hand to Matt's back before turning and disappearing into the crowd.

Flirting with Damon? There had to be some mistake. She never flirted with Damon... Unless you counted the sixties' decade dance last year and that had been more good-natured teasing than flirtation. Right...?

Plus Jeremy had _just_ died. They hadn't been together, but for a while she had thought things might be heading in that direction. There was no way in hell she'd been flirting with Damon.

Then why did she suddenly feel so guilty?

She glanced over at the man in question and found him smiling like he had won some kind of prize. She narrowed her gaze, frustration heating her skin, and snapped, "Get that smile off your face."

Irritation sparked behind his light blue eyes as the smile slipped from his features. "What? I'm not allowed to be amused?"

"Is that what that was? Amusement?"

He pursed his lips together tightly and let his attention wander around the room. He seemed determined not to answer, so she asked him something else,

"Has Stefan tried anything with Elena yet?"

Words tumbled out of Damon's mouth so quickly Bonnie had a hard time following them. "No, it wasn't amusement. It was gratification. I happen to like the fact that you might like me – and yes, actually, he has. He made a comment and she seemed to respond. I felt extremely threatened by it."

He tensed all over and Bonnie brought the cup to her lips to hide her sudden nerves. She could feel the heat of his glare as the liquid met her tongue. It was bitter and disgusting and she made sure to take an extra long swallow.

She'd be lying if she said she hadn't wanted to get a reaction out of him. And she'd gotten it... But now he looked like he wanted to rip her to shreds and she felt like she had crossed some kind of line.

But that's what they did! They called each other on their shit and crossed whatever lines the other had drawn just to prove that they could. They weren't always nice, but they were always honest... and honestly, she felt a little bad for asking that question.

When she finally lowered her drink, she said, barely loud enough for him to hear over the music, "It's just the spell, you know. It's not real."

He brought himself closer, lowering his face until it was inches away from hers, and enunciated clearly, "Fuck. You."

All sympathy vanished from her as she watched him straighten and storm back down the hallway they had come from. She stared long and hard after him, her blood boiling like he had ignited some secret fuse, and just managed to keep from yelling _'well, fuck you too!'_ at his retreating back.

"God!" she exclaimed furiously, strangling the empty air in front of her with her free hand. "Damon knows exactly how to drive me _up_ _the fucking wall!_"

She turned to see Matt studying her, his arms crossed loosely over his chest and head tilted.

"What?"

He shrugged lightly. "Nothing. It's just... I don't get you two. One minute you seem into each other, the next you're out for blood."

She felt the muscles in her back coil and she narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean _into each other?_"

Matt flinched before lifting his hands defensively, "Hey, Stefan said it first."

"You think we were flirting?" Shock rippled through her and she had to shake her head. She couldn't be hearing this right. Was everyone on crack?

"Well maybe not you," he relented, "but _he_ definitely was. I think I finally get what Elena was saying."

Wait, what?

"You and Elena talked about me and Damon?" It was such a strange idea; she couldn't wrap her head around it.

He nodded. "When you were on the island and Damon stayed behind to find you."

"Damon stayed behind to find me?"

"You didn't know that?" His eyebrows lifted to kiss his hairline. "Apparently he didn't want to leave until he found you."

She remembered Stefan telling her about Jeremy and she hadn't found the strength to ask any questions beyond how that could be possible. Stefan had quickly explained that Silas had brainwashed her into thinking she needed to commit a massacre to get Jeremy back and the fact that the witches had attempted to get her out of Silas's control, but almost killed her in the process.

She had barely been listening to be honest. Her mind had shut down after hearing about Jeremy. It was possible Stefan mentioned something about Damon and she had been experiencing too much emotional turmoil to understand.

"No, I didn't," she said, letting her eyes drift to where Damon had disappeared. He didn't want to leave without her...?

Something warm lapped at her chest and she frowned, whispering to herself, "He's so weird."

A commotion on the other side of the room caught her attention. People were hollering above the music and whistling appreciatively and Bonnie twisted to find Stefan on a table, waving a bottle of Jack over his head and doing some pretty impressive body rolls.

Air escaped her in a startled laugh as she watched him pull a girl from the mass of bodies up onto the table with him and suddenly Bonnie felt like she was watching an x-rated deleted scene from Dirty Dancing.

"Wow," she noted appreciatively, "Who knew Stefan had it in him?"

"The man has some serious moves," Matt agreed.

Stefan's attention snapped to the side and he went very still, watching the front door. Seconds later it was being pushed open and he raised his bottle high in greeting, shouting above the music, "Ladies and gentleman, the guests of honour have finally arrived!"

The crowd went wild.

Bonnie went on her toes to peer over the bobbing heads but couldn't see anything. Blowing out a harsh breath, she turned to Matt. "Can you see who it is?"

He shook his head. "I'm not that tall."

"I guess it doesn't really matter. We should probably head back to the library anyways."

"BONNIE!" Caroline's voice cut through the noise of the room easily and Bonnie spun to find her friend shoving through the horde to get to her. With very little time to brace herself, she was being enveloped in a rib-breaking bear hug.

Caroline squeezed her tight, rocking her from side to side, and Bonnie melted into the embrace, squeezing back twice as hard. Her eyes stung unexpectedly and she blinked quickly before closing them altogether and concentrating on the warmth and love emanating from her best friend.

"I feel like I haven't seen you in forever," Caroline spoke into her ear. "I was so worried about you, and I missed you like crazy."

"I missed you too."

"Are you okay?"

"Not really," Bonnie admitted, "but I feel better than I did this morning."

They pulled back slightly and laughed when they noticed the tears in each other's eyes before falling forward into another hug.

Eventually they separated and Bonnie noticed Klaus standing just behind Caroline's shoulder. His eyes caught Bonnie's and he nodded in acknowledgement. "I heard about what happened on the island. My condolences."

Bonnie pursed her lips to keep from saying anything, knowing she might tell him to stake himself if she wasn't careful. Instead she grasped Caroline's hands tightly and asked, "Can we talk?"

"Sure!" Caroline said, pulling the plastic cup from Bonnie's hand and spinning to pass it to Klaus to hold before giving him a quick peck on the cheek. "Don't kill anyone while I'm gone, okay?"

"I make no promises, love," he responded lightly, his lips pulling up at one corner.

Caroline slipped her arm through Bonnie's and together they disappeared down the hallway.

* * *

Damon appeared suddenly at the end of the corridor and, his gaze locking onto hers, he crooked a finger in her direction. "I have something I want to say to you," he began without preamble.

Bonnie and Caroline stopped in their tracks. The blond narrowed her eyes at Damon in annoyance. "Uh, she's kind of busy right now. You can talk to her later."

She tugged gently on Bonnie's arm to pull her towards the room on their right, but Bonnie stayed rooted to the spot looking at Damon. "Is it important?"

"No," he answered, his head twisting and features scrunching like he had a bad taste in his mouth. "But," he ground out stubbornly, "I still want to talk to you _now_."

She released an exasperated sigh. "Damon, if it isn't important then just wait your turn."

His eyes rounded dramatically as he studied her, his jaw dropping slightly before exclaiming, "Unbelievable! You have no problem giving _me_ commands like you're handing out _fucking candies_, but when it comes to anyone else it's like pulling teeth."

Bonnie opened her mouth to respond, but he had already stormed off at the speed of light.

"What a drama queen," Caroline commented and then, watching Bonnie from the corner of her eye, asked, "What was he even talking about?"

"It's complicated," she said, moving to hold the door open to the room, "and kind of what I wanted to speak to you about."

Caroline waved her hand dismissively as they entered the room, talking rapidly all the while, "I couldn't care less about Damon's drama, especially when there are so many bigger and better things happening. Like my wedding! It was so nice of Stefan to throw this engagement party for us. It's not at all how I would have done it, but it's nice for something last minute and it's the thought that counts, right?"

Bonnie followed slowly, twisting when she heard the door close behind her and finding Matt leaning casually against the wall beside it.

Caroline turned and paused, looking between Matt and Bonnie, her brow furrowed. "Matt? What are you doing?"

"I'm hanging out with Bonnie," he answered simply.

"Oh my God, not you too," she groaned. "We're trying to have girl time. Come back later."

"No."

Caroline's eyes bugged to twice their natural size. "_Excuse me?_"

Bonnie quickly stepped between her two friends, an awkward sounding laugh escaping her. "He's kind of stuck with me for the moment." She lifted her hand before Caroline could question further and shook her head. "It's a long story, but... would it be so bad if he were here?"

"Yes!" she exclaimed. "I had the most awkward moment of my life today and the only thing that could make it worse is having to talk about it in front of my ex."

"We broke up a year ago," Matt interjected, his mouth turned down, "and yeah, I was mad, but I'm not mad at you anymore and I haven't been in a long while." He shrugged. "You can talk to me about stuff, you know."

Caroline looked unconvinced. "Can I? We haven't really spoken that much since..."

"That's on me," he confessed, ducking his head and rubbing the back of his neck. "I've been so focused on paying the bills and not failing out of school I haven't really talked to anyone much... In fact," he looked at Bonnie, his eyes softening slightly, "I think I've interacted with more people in the past few hours than I have in the past year. So thanks, I guess... for casting the spell."

Bonnie waved his gratitude aside, her eyebrows knitting. "No, that's... I mean, the entire thing was really just a mistake."

"Yeah, well, whatever it was I'm kind of grateful. I've been feeling really disconnected from everyone, but I don't anymore. Just because I don't want to get pulled into the supernatural stuff doesn't mean I have to isolate myself. Like, I didn't even know what was going on with you guys half the time. It's nice not having to be filled in for once."

"What are you two talking about?" Caroline asked, bemused.

Bonnie's features scrunched apologetically as she faced her friend. "Yeah that's what I wanted to speak to you about... You know how you're marrying Klaus?"

"Only the best decision I've ever made!" she replied, beaming brightly.

"Right. Except it wasn't really your decision; it was mine."

Caroline's grin lost some of its vibrancy as she stared at Bonnie in confusion. "What?"

Taking a deep, steadying breath, Bonnie explained in a rush, "I cast this spell that makes people do what I tell them to and I may have told you to marry Klaus."

There was a long stretch of silence as Caroline processed this information, her face crumpling further. "What?" she repeated eventually.

"Care, I'm so sorry," Bonnie said, stepping closer to her friend. "I was angry when I said it and at the time I had no idea about the spell –"

"No, that's impossible." Caroline shook her head firmly. "I would remember you saying something like that to me."

"Well, you weren't there at the time," she amended, but Caroline was no longer listening.

"There's no way this is because of a spell. Klaus and I are totes in love. I mean, look!" She shoved her hand in front of Bonnie's nose and Bonnie had to crane her neck back to see it properly. When she did her jaw slackened.

"Whoa. You could sink the Titanic with that thing," she heard Matt remark from his spot against the wall.

He wasn't joking. Caroline had to be rocking the biggest diamond she had ever seen. It was a wonder Bonnie hadn't noticed it earlier, especially with the lights reflecting off it – it was almost blinding.

"I know, right?" the blonde vampire crowed in delight before grasping Bonnie's hands and pulling her closer. Her blue eyes bored into hers as she spoke somberly, "And I know it's still really early, but you're one of the most important people in my life and my wedding wouldn't mean as much to me if you weren't a part of it, so... I would really love it if you would be my maid of honour."

Unexpected affection warmed Bonnie's insides and tugged at the corners of her lips. "Care, that's so sweet. Of course I would – wait," she shook her head, coming back to reality, "no, what am I talking about? This isn't real."

Caroline took a step back, releasing Bonnie's hands. "What will it take to convince you that I'm in love?"

"There isn't anything. Marrying Klaus would be a massive -"

"Why can't you just be happy for me, Bonnie?" Caroline asked suddenly, her face reddening. "I know how hard losing Jeremy was and I wanted so badly to be there for you, but you wouldn't let me and now something good has happened and I want to share it with my best friend but I feel like I can't."

Bonnie felt the sting of those words in her chest.

"Care, that was harsh," Matt chastised.

"It's true though!"

Bonnie lowered her gaze, her mind racing. She had hoped that telling Caroline about the spell would make her more conscious of the fact that the decisions being made were not her own. She had hoped she could start fighting the spell the way Damon seemed to, but clearly talking about this wasn't helping.

All she was doing was upsetting Care.

"_**Don't pussy-foot around, Bonnie. Be aggressive,"**_ Damon's voice coached somewhere in her head and she grimaced. It seemed like she'd be taking his advice for the second time today.

Locking eyes with the blonde in front of her, she spoke firmly, "Caroline, you _do not_ want this wedding."

It was like a switch was flipped. The light in Care's eyes dimmed slightly, shoulders drooping, as she took a step back and looked at Bonnie.

"Oh my God," Caroline gasped, her hand covering her mouth, "you're right."

An unexpected weight lifted from Bonnie's shoulders and she exhaled deeply in relief, "I'm so sorry I did that to you."

"Aw, Bon," Caroline cooed, coming forward and wrapping her arms around her, squeezing her close. "It's okay. In fact, I should be _thanking _you; you just saved me a lot of money."

Bonnie laughed feeling a little giddy. "You're taking this really well," she couldn't help noting. She had anticipated at least a solid week of cold shoulder before forgiveness.

"Why wouldn't I be? This is such a great idea; I can't believe I didn't think of it sooner!"

"What?" She pulled back slowly to look at her friend, apprehension settling like a lump in the pit of her stomach.

Caroline's blue eyes sparkled as she responded lightly, "I always thought I wanted something traditional, but now I realize I don't _need_ a big wedding. As long as I have Klaus none of the rest matters. Thank you, Bonnie, for helping me see that."

Bonnie blinked slowly. "How...?"

This couldn't be happening.

"And I'm sorry about getting upset with you earlier. I just really wanted your support." She hugged Bonnie quickly before releasing her and rushing to the door. Turning to face the room again, she said, "I'm so excited! Eloping is _so_ romantic!"

She squealed joyously and, waving goodbye, disappeared from view.

"Oh my God!" Bonnie exclaimed, still too shocked to move. Her fingers tangled into her soft locks, tugging on them. "What did I just do?"

"I think... you made things worse," Matt confessed, his brow wrinkled sympathetically.

* * *

Bonnie moved carefully through the press of bodies on either side of her, her eyes darting over faces at lightning speed.

"Any luck?" Matt asked, appearing at her side.

"No. You?"

He shook his head, a frown marring his features.

_Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit._

She didn't need to see Caroline in order for her commands to work, but after what just happened Bonnie felt hesitant about saying anything when she couldn't see the immediate results.

"I need Damon," she concluded reluctantly.

"Alright. You find him; I'll stay here and keep looking for Care."

She nodded, turning to leave the room when she paused, twisting back. "Wait... You don't want to come with me?"

A tiny smile peeked at the corner of his lips. "I wanted to tell you earlier, but you were busy with Caroline. I don't feel like I _need_ to hang out with you anymore."

"Matt! That's amazing!" she said, rushing back to him, excitement bubbling in her chest. "Is the spell broken?"

"I doubt it. Caroline is still trying to marry Klaus."

Her brow crumpled, excitement fading. "I don't understand. When did you start to feel normal?"

"Sometime while we were speaking to Care."

"Do you think it wore off?" But even as she asked she knew that wasn't the case. Caroline was the first person she said anything about and Matt was the last. Shouldn't the spell have worn off on her first? None of this made any sense.

Matt lifted his shoulders in a shrug. "Maybe Damon can make sense of it."

"Maybe."

"We should probably hurry. I can't imagine we have a lot of time."

* * *

Damon could smell Bonnie's light citrusy scent before she even reached the second floor landing. His eyes narrowed on the book he was reading and he flipped a page.

If she thought she could just brush him off and then pay attention to him whenever _she_ felt like it, she was sorely mistaken. If she wasn't going to give him the time of day then he would repay her in kind. He wouldn't talk to her. He wouldn't even look in her direction.

She was nothing to him.

Decided, he focused harder on his book, re-reading the sentence he had been distracted from. He could hear her footsteps coming down the hall and stopping outside of his door. She hesitated, air rushing past her lips in a large breath, and then knocked.

He read the sentence for a third time.

She knocked a little harder and added a, "Damon?" for good measure.

Lips turning down, he made it to the next sentence.

She pushed the door open and walked into his room and, like a magnet, his attention snapped to her despite his wishes. He glared, hoping the heat of his gaze would burn against her skin.

"Oh, is it _my_ turn now?" he asked before she could even part her lips. "Can you finally fit me into your busy schedule?"

She cocked an eyebrow at him, tilting her head. "What is your problem?"

"You're my problem," he bit back. It would have been nice if he left it at that, but he couldn't fight tagging on, "I don't like it when you ignore me."

Son of a bitch, this spell was going to ruin his life.

Bonnie just rolled her eyes. "I wasn't ignoring you. I needed to talk to Caroline – it was important and your thing wasn't. It's called having priorities."

"I should be the priority," he grumbled darkly, low enough she couldn't hear it. He wasn't sure why he felt that was the gospel truth.

"Speaking of which," she continued obliviously, "there have been some... unexpected developments."

He placed his book on the bed beside him before crossing his arms over his chest and studying her. "The bad kind?"

Her features scrunched as she answered thoughtfully, "It's kind of a mixed bag actually. On the bright side, Matt's no longer effected by the spell –"

"What?" He shot off the bed to stand in front of her, glancing around and noticing for the first time that her shadow was missing. "How?"

"We haven't figured that part out yet. And then there's the other thing..."

"There's more?"

She lowered her lashes and bit her lip, blood rushing pleasantly to her cheeks. "Caroline is eloping with Klaus."

He felt his eyebrows shoot skyward. "How the hell did that happen?"

She closed her eyes entirely as she blushed deeper. "I may have told her she didn't want a wedding and _somehow_ that translated to 'you should elope.'"

A deep chuckle escaped him as he watched her practically melt with embarrassment. "Of course it did," he commented with a teasing twist of his lips that she couldn't see.

"This is _your_ fault," she accused suddenly, her green eyes snapping open.

"_My_ fault?" He stiffened, his amusement vanishing as quickly as it came.

"All I could think about was you telling me to be aggressive."

"Well you should be," he defended, the muscles in his shoulders and back relaxing as he smirked, "but now we know you also need to _specific._"

Her head fell back as she groaned loudly.

The amusement was back, softening the edge of his smirk. He lifted a thoughtful brow and opened his mouth instinctively, "You're really cute sometimes."

Her head shot up to look at him and he spun around, striding to his closet. He ignored the uncomfortable leaping sensation in his chest and made a show of rummaging for his favourite leather jacket – a completely unnecessary activity considering the space was meticulously organized so he knew exactly where everything was.

"So I'm guessing you want to find the lovebirds before they tie the knot?" he inquired casually over his shoulder.

"That would be the plan, yes."

"Alright then." He turned back to her, easing his jacket on with a stylized grace it had taken him years to perfect. He noticed the way her eyes followed his movements with satisfaction and strolled passed her. "Let's go."

"We should probably head to Caroline's so I can get something of hers and do a locator spell."

He paused by his bedroom door and looked back at her. "Not necessary." She arched a disbelieving brow and he felt his lips quirk. "Think. If you were Klaus and Caroline, where would you go to elope?"

Her eyes drifted to a spot behind him as her mind worked through the possibilities until he saw the answer settle on her features. "Vegas?"

"Go big or go home, right?" he added with a careless lift of his shoulder.

* * *

They made it into the crowded living room and started towards the front door. Bobbing and weaving through the ocean of people, Bonnie spotted a familiar coif of pin straight hair. Changing direction mid-step, she moved to the figure and found Elena looking around, her features pinched.

Coming closer, Bonnie tapped her lightly on the shoulder and Elena spun in surprise to face her.

"Bonnie! Oh, thank God." She fell forward into Bonnie's arms. "Something really weird is happening."

"I know... It's kind of my fault," she said, pushing Elena back softly.

"What do you mean?"

"Bonnie, come on, let's go," Damon said, appearing just behind her shoulder.

"Damon!" Elena exclaimed excitedly.

"Hey." Damon inclined his head in her direction, before focusing on Bonnie, "Are we going or what? We can probably catch them at the airport if we leave now."

"Yeah, can you give me a second?" Bonnie said, turning back to Elena. "I guess I'll explain everything when we get back."

"No, please wait." Elena reached forward, latching onto Bonnie's arm. "It's like I'm not even here."

Bonnie's forehead scrunched in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"People are treating me like... like I'm not even here."

Damon sighed heavily. "Look, we don't have _time _for this."

"He's right," Bonnie said, shooting Elena a worried look. "I don't have a lot of time. Just tell me what's happening to you."

"Right after I left the boarding house I started to notice something... off about the way people were treating me. Whenever I'm talking to someone it's like I can only keep their attention for a few –"

"Bonnie," Damon bent down to whisper impatiently, "time's a-ticking."

"I know," she twisted her head to whisper back before addressing Elena, "Look, I really have to go, but maybe you should come with us and we can figure out what's going on with you on the way?"

"Ugh," Damon groaned loudly. "We got rid of one wheel and picked up another."

"Damon," both girls exclaimed, one in wounded surprise, the other in irritation.

He grimaced and pressed his lips into a thin line, pointedly directing his attention across the room.

"If you're coming with us, we'll have to leave now," Bonnie told Elena.

"Where are we going?"

"The airport. We have a wedding to crash."

"All I heard were the words wedding and crash, but sounds like a good time to me," said Stefan, popping out of nowhere, a new red solo cup in hand. "I'm in."

"Oh, fuck no." Damon shook his head, a deep frown marring his features. "This isn't some joyride that you can just tag along on."

"What about a joyride? Are we going somewhere?" Matt asked, peeling himself out of the crowd before spotting Elena. "Oh hey, Elena."

"Matt," Elena greeted, "What are you doing here?"

"Something about a wedding," Stefan answered Matt, completely ignoring the fact that Elena had spoken.

That was weird. Bonnie glanced between Elena and the boys. She was starting to understand what her friend was talking about.

"Does this mean you found Caroline?" Matt asked Bonnie.

"Not for certain, but we think she might be headed to Vegas."

"Makes sense," he nodded. "So are we road tripping to Vegas?"

"No, dumbass. To the airport," Damon snapped. "And you're not invited. None of you are." He glowered at the rest of the group while gesturing between him and Bonnie. "It's supposed to be just the two of us. How hard is that for you guys to understand?"


End file.
